Category Archives: Political things

Thankful…

Posted in Blood test, budgets, California, cancer, Gratitude, Political things, swimming by

The government has reopened, and hopefully, the services people need will happen quickly!! What a joke for trump, though. Let’s hope this comes back to bite him where it hurts with the LONGEST shutdown ever. Plus the damning Epstein reports. Will it bring him down? Probably not, unfortunately. sigh….

Hip Hip Hooray!!!!! My labs came back and went down!!!! not in the normal range but down 4.5 points to 21!!!! I’m over the moon. So. I get a reprieve for at least another month!!!!

I’ve adjusted quite well to my ResMed CPAP machine. Clearly, I had sleep apnea, and this seems to have relieved ALL the symptoms. As resistant as I was, now I’m glad I persevered. The one I have just has the pillows you put in your nose, so it is not claustrophobic. Overall, I’m pleased that it’s working. I haven’t noticed much difference during the day, though. Supposedly, you are supposed to feel less sleepy, which I didn’t have to begin with. Anyway, there’s an app to use to track sleep and use of the CPAP, and it’s fun to look at it.

Thankful for the pool as always. I went on Veteran’s Day, and holidays are hit or miss. This time was a hit, and I had a lane to myself. It was very nice.

Thankful for my kids helping when they can. I’m hoping my son comes up this weekend to do some stuff, but his partner just had surgery, so he’s been caretaking them. (non binary).

Thankful to be getting a little more organized. I redid my clothes in the closet, since most of B’s are not in there anymore. One side looks good, the other is still a mess. But I plan on working on that today.

I’m thankful that, even though it’s raining, I can use the treadmill to get some steps in. Rain is forecast for the whole day.

Well, I’m off to do whatever.

Friday Things

Posted in budgets, California, cash envelopes, cooking, frugalism, Political things, swimming by

It’s been a good week overall. I got a swim in and a trip to the Maheny gym and library. So a good workout week for plus I walked 3 days. Today I’m not going to the pool, but I might go tomorrow. I am trying to balance going down to Roseville with gas costs.

I went to both Winco and Trader Joe’s this week. Between the two, I spent $133 on food. I should be ok for a while, except for maybe some salad stuff. Last night I made some fajitas with a piece of beef from the freezer and lots of red and orange peppers. I wrapped them in a WW tortilla. There was plenty left over for my daughter when she got home from her job.

I’ve been watching Shogun at night. The original with Richard Chamberlin. It’s funny how much it brought back why I loved so much about Japanese culture. Of course, back then it was also brutal, but the mind only goes to the good things like shoji screens and the whole minimalist feel. I went on line to buy the books and wow, I’m not spending $100 for the 2 volume set. I hope it’ll show up at the thrift store. My son frequents them enough I asked him to look out for it. He’s the one that found the Shogun blue ray set at the thrift store so that was quite a find. it must have been an amzing production with costumes and sets.

This morning, I need to go pay for our PO Box. Wow, has that gone up. I’m paying $192 for a year. That seems outrageous. I had some of it in my cash envelope, but not all of it. I need to bulk up my cash envelopes because it helps me keep ahead of bills coming up. Since I don’t have much extra these days, I’m not able to put as much away. I think Christmas will be quite minimal partly because I don’t have any extra money to buy things. That’s ok really. Both kids are adults who get what they want anyway. What I’ll aim for is some cash to each or a gift card.

This is the Chinese Pistachio tree I bought to use as a memorial planting for Barclay. There was one person who sent me a $ contribution for Barclay, I used his $ for this. I think I will buy a second one, and I’ll pay for that.

I might go into town for a few things, but I’ll wait and see how the morning shapes up. I want to mop the floors and tidy up a few areas of the house. If ,after that ,I still want to go, I can.

Next week, my AA house insurance gets put on the cc with autopay. I’ll just have to keep paying that down over the next couple of months. (sigh)

We’re due for some rain this weekend and cooler temperatures. Then next week we’re back in the 70s.

I, like so many people, am just mortified by the destruction of the East Wing of the White House. It’s such a power play by rump. There are no words to describe it except evil. He will be seen in history as THE WORST PRESIDENT ever.

Friday Things/ Happy 4th or is it for this country?

Posted in California, cancer, husband, peritoneal mesothelomia, Political things, swimming by

I dont really need to go into it any more than that as I’m sure you are all aware of how awful that bill is and how many 17 million people will lose health care. What a travesty. History will tell the tale of this being the worst administration in history. It’s cruelty, racist, white nationalism, harming LGBTQ+, and on and on and on.

I managed another swim so I feel like I’m slowly getting back to some routine. The pool was glorious as it was not busy. I feel I’m floundering with my schedule so I would like to try and figure out a ‘new’ one going forward. I’m also somewhat depressed so I’m not feeling very motivated but hopefully this will pass.

After the pool, I went across the street to Winco and spent $75 some of that was wine for the week ahead. Then I crossed the parking lot and went into Trader Joes. I spent about $100 there but got lots of our favorites. I picked a few frozen meals, hatch chile and macaroni , and their green chile tamales too. I also got eggs, milk, bread and some other basics.

I’ve had some very touching cards from a few people about Barclay but the 2 most endearing were the two people who donated to a tree planting in B’s name. We too are going to plant a tree this fall for him. He loved trees and his BA was in forestry so there’s a link plus all the years he worked part time for the Forest Service were important to him. He was a firefighter for a number of years( starting in 1974) with the Forest Service and we kind of think that may have had a link to him getting the mesothelioma, although know can ever really tell. I think our best guess is it was just a break down of DNA like him getting MDS, a blood cancer. Unfortunately, meso, is a tumor load cancer and therein lies the difficulty with treatment.

I’ve gotten through quite a bit of tasks to be done but there are still more to do which I hope to finish next week.

He was on KVMR radio for 25 years as a broadcaster with his show being all about Dylan. So he has quite a few CD’s of his show so I plan on buying a CD player so I can listen to some. Of course, we had an old CD player that we used for camping but got rid of that when we got Rubi.

Menu Monday

Posted in cancer, cooking, meal planning, Political things by

Last night we had corn on the cob and baked potatoes with lots of toppings and a small salad on the side.

Monday- I might do corn again, but on the grill, chicken sausages on the grill too. Boca burger for the veggie.

Tuesday- I defrosted some carne asada, and I’ll have that with a tortilla and toppings. I have beans too, so I’ll make up a bean burrito for B.

Wednesday- I have lots of eggs, so I think I’ll do brinner. Scrambled eggs, and I’ll do some potatoes on the side.

Thursday- I’ve been wanting to make some minestrone, and I got all the ingredients so I might do that.

Friday- Regular pizza night

Saturday- I think I’ll do another BBQ with steak and veggies. Tofu for B.

The week ahead looks good. We’ll know his blood counts by late afternoon, which will really determine the week. I have my appointment on Thursday, so I can’t do that day or Friday, but my daughter could do Friday if necessary. It’s wait and see again.

I’ve just finished my house reset and still need to sweep the kitchen floor.

Just a comment about Biden being diagnosed with cancer. He summed it up well, ‘that we all are affected by cancer’, one way or another. I just wish the orange man in the white house would give up his bashing of Biden. Biden did the best he could and took us out of tRump’s first disastrous term, especially dealing with the aftermath of COVID-19. Was he mentally competent? I’m sure he was until maybe this last year when the decline was evident. But look at tRump, he’s definitely not all there with his ramblings and impulses. Plus, Biden cherishes democracy, and tRump wants to destroy it in the name of righteousness. What a joke, a dangerous joke though.

Menu Monday on Tuesday

Posted in Blood test, books, California, husband, Political things by

I had to leave early yesterday(7:15) to get my labs, so I didn’t get to this. Then, I headed down to the pool and had a good swim. After that, I had to do a return at the Galleria Mall, so that took some time. All in all, after I got home, I was still dealing with changing my dental appt to a morning. I think I have everything squared away. Then B got an appt for the CT scan Dr. Lee wants in Sacramento, so he had to leave right after I got home. So I was pretty fried by the afternoon.

Last night, I just did a brinner of waffles, scrambled eggs, and veggie sausage. I had put on pinquitos in the crock pot but they weren’t quite done by dinner. We’ll have them tonight.

Tuesday: Pinquitos with cornbread

Wednesday: protein of some sort, probably chicken/tofu with baked potatoes from the freezer.

Thursday: I think I’ll make a homemade mac and cheese. I have a salad pack to use up.

Friday: Pizza of some sort. We haven’t had takeout in like forever so maybe that.

Saturday: some kind of soup

Sunday: Salmon from Alaskian Wildfish Co. with quinoa and?

My meals are not set, and I often change the day of things to fit what we feel like. But like Flylady, it’s good to have a basic outline of what to eat or do.

It’s still raining a LOT!! But tomorrow looks like a break. We need it. I might go to the gym /library, but I feel like it might be nice to stay home if the weather is nice.

I have a few things to tidy up, but the house is in good shape overall. The kitchen could use some tidying up. I went through the fridge and repackaged some stuff for the freezer(cheese) and threw away a few things. I might go do a little more of that.

The news is so depressing. I mean, RFK for health and human services when he’s against vaccines? These Republicans are spineless jerks. Just wait till there’s a full pandemic of bird flu, then what? Will he tell us all to inject bleach?? good grief, charlie brown.

that’s it for me today. Oh, I just finished 2 books. One is the classic Robin Hood that I have in Easton Press.

And then the new Evanovich, which is a real hoot!!

Thankful Thursday

Posted in books, California, cooking, Gratitude, library, peritoneal mesothelomia, Political things by

First, what a tragedy about the AA plane and the Black Hawk helicopter. Very sad indeed. I listened to part of what trump said, and at first, he was somewhat consoling and then spiraled into his usual blaming of Obama and Biden. Geez, give it up, just be with the victims here and not political.

I’m very thankful to get the Stanford call, and at least we can get this part done. Today, he has a video call with the anesthesiologist, and tomorrow, a video visit with Dr. Neal, who is the mesothelioma oncologist at Stanford.

I’m thankful we’ve had a nice period of no rain. Tomorrow starts a long period of lots of rain. I’ll have to see how the walking will go.

I’m thankful to feel like myself again after that awful night. It’s the simple things, right?

I’m thankful I got to the gym before my Velcade. It was nice because then I came straight home.

I’m thankful for the library and the huge bag of books I checked out. Three cookbooks which were new, so that’ll be fun. Reading cookbooks is like a hobby. I don’t often make the recipes, but I like looking at them.

Menu Monday and miscellany

Posted in Blood test, bread, California, cooking, meal planning, Political things by

The fires in SoCal are so awful. So many people lost everything. The power of nature is amazing and with fire, it’s hard to stop esp with the Santa Anna winds. Plus there are so many crazy people with conspiracy theories it’s enough to make you gag. Republicans keep spouting about not having enough water in fire hydrants. There’s plenty of water you idiots, but when there are dozens of hydrants being used there is of course going to be some effect. Geez, stick with the facts. It is concerning though with the orange man as president, will he be an asshole and withhold funds? Let us hope not for all of those people in LA that need it. Well, I try not to get sucked in but frankly, it is hard not to.

Menu for the week:

Last night we had the last of the breaded cod from the freezer with some fries and a salad.

Monday- I plan on making spaghetti with sauce and salad. I think I have some garlic bread in the freezer.

Tuesday- A freezer meal of chile rellenos, beans, and rice.

Wednesday- Baked tofu, with leftover potatoes from the freezer and broccoli.

Thursday- Soup, if I can get my act together. I wanted to make a Pasta Figlioli soup with Rancho Gordo beans.

Friday-Pizza, I really want to use up that frozen pizza but I haven’t made a homemade one in a long time so I may do that. I have a bag of 00 flour I can use.

Saturday- TBD???

I’m off for my labs and then swim. The warming pool is closed for maintenance so I’m not sure if that will impact the big pool. My backup plan is to go to the gym for a workout if it’s too busy. Mondays are like a box of chocolates, you never know what it’ll be.

My sourdough starter looks better this morning so I think when I get home I’ll make up the dough and then feed the other 2 I have in jars. ( I have 3 containers going to see which one does the best.)

Thankful Thursday

Posted in California, Gratitude, home stuff, Political things by

I am thankful for the sunny days we’re having. It’s not warm but it has been in the 60’s. I’m definitely a sun person.

I’m thankful that the gym was not busy yesterday and I spent 30 minutes on the weight machines. The regulars I know were there and maybe 1person seemed new.

I’m thankful for these days when Barclay is feeling good enough to go do chores. He got the cat food yesterday and went to the bank. Next week is the video visit so we should know what the next step is by Friday.

I rolled up the LR rug the other day because I wanted to see how much the vacuum picks up without this rug. It seems this rug always has some sort of fiber that comes out with vacuuming and I wonder if it’s because it’s a cheap rug.?? It wasn’t that cheap but I had gotten it on a Prime Day about 3 years ago. Anyway, I was done with it. I’m not sure what I want to get, maybe a Ruggable. Costco has a special Ruggable deal so I may do that. For now, I’ll see how it is. I plan on offering it on Facebook Market place free.

I also moved the little grey couch out of the sunroom and put it in my office area. I’m going to leave it there for a while. We don’t sit out in the sunroom this time of year because it’s too cold. I’ll leave it here till spring.

Today is a home day unless I run out to drop books off. I still haven’t gotten to that.:(

I’m thankful we’re all healthy right now especially with flu season happening.

In the political arena, I’m thankful President Carter was honored by so many people. He was really a good person and lived his values. It was weird seeing frump there though as he is the exact opposite of everything Carter was.

Goodbye 2024!!! Hello 2025!!!

Posted in budgeting, California, cancer, cash envelopes, cooking, decluttering, Political things, swimming, Walking by

Well, we made it to the end of the year. After the election, I pretty much haven’t read too much news. Little blips come in now and then but overall, I think my mental health is better for it.

I’m dreading frump taking office. It’s beyond comprehension how he can stand at that podium and take the oath of office after everything he’s done. I’m convinced he’ll go down in history as the worst president EVER. It’s going to be a shit storm for sure. Well, I can only control myself and my little world, so I’ll focus on that.

I was planning on staying home today but I need to return an Amazon purchase. I accidentally clicked on 2 of a calendar and I don’t need two calendars. Since I’ll be in town, I’ll get the veggies for the fondue tonight. if my daughter comes with me, she mentioned needing to go to Target.

The dinner menu was simple for the week :

Pasta bake from the freezer

Costco’s vegetable soup and rolls

fondue (tonight)

nut loaf and potatoes from the freezer

pizza of some sort

something else from the freezer

tofu scramble with leftover veggies

Lots of simple meals this week.

I have a few goals for 2025 but mostly it’s maintaining my swimming, gym workouts, and walking.

I’d like to add finding one new place to camp with full hook-ups and going to the coast, but so much depends on how the surgery goes and recovery. And as of right now, we don’t even know if that’s what will happen. If he gets the green light then we need to plan hotel stays and how that is going to all work out with me staying there. As far as we know B would be in the hospital for probably 2 weeks and then I’m not sure if he needs to stay within 15 minutes of the hospital like he did at UCD. If so we will need something like an extended stay hotel. I guess we’ll know by mid-January as that’s when Dr. Lee is back from vacation.

I could think of lots of other things I’d like to set as goals but I don’t want to commit to anything.

Around the house and yard, we need another carport as the one over the VW broke in the summer. We need to budget for garden stuff.

The VW needs a starter and battery so that needs to be budgeted.

I’d like to start painting some of the rooms, especially the living room.

Anything with remodeling the kitchen is totally on hold as we just don’t have money but we do need a new stove so that will get budgeted. Our stove has knobs on the front and because it’s about 10 years old the knobs will turn on if you lean over the stove and that is way dangerous. We’re all aware of it, so we’re careful but it has happened and then you can smell gas. I think I can find a good stove for around $1000. The one we have is Whirpool and it’s been a great stove except for this knob issue. I’ll check Costco first and then Lowes or Home Depot.

Of course, I’d like to keep minimizing things around the house and making sure we have only the things we need, use, and love. Mostly, that’s just keeping on top of hot spots like the entry way because things do pile up there.

Financially, have most of my cash envelopes fully funded for annual bills. That does take some effort as SS only goes so far. Right now, I have $70 for car maintenance so that needs some money for the VW repair. I’m sure it’s going to be around $1000.

As always, we’ll see what happens.

Wishing you a happy new Year!! “let’s hope it’s a good one without any fear” John Lennon.

Chester helping me at my desk!!

Frugal Friday

Posted in Blood test, budgeting, budgets, California, cancer, frugalism, meal planning, Political things by

We got home around 5:30 p.m. after B’s infusion. It was raining and dark, so driving was a bit of a challenge. I had made some beet soup in the IP, so dinner was done. Overall, it went well down there, and he got the 2 bags. So today, he’ll get labs and see how much it improved the platelets.

He does have an appt for tomorrow back down in Rocklin, but my son or daughter will do that. It’d be great if he doesn’t need them but that’s not too likely.

This morning is still cloudy but no rain. I considered driving to the pool, but honestly, I’m just tired of driving this week. This morning, I’ll do some house things and read. I’ll also check the pantry for menu ideas. Tonight is pizza night but we may not do that. I guess I’ll see what everyone want to eat.

I went to Safeway on Tuesday after my labs. I think I spent @$90. This month’s food is over budget but I’m ok with that as some of that was stocking up stuff from Costco. I still need to go get a few things from the Holiday market and there is Thanksgiving. Some months are just like that.

We have spent more on gas than normal, driving back and forth to Sacramento, Rocklin, etc. The Santa Fe needs windshield wipers so B will take the car maintenance envelope and get those when he can.

I’ve only got a few things left to buy for Christmas. I need to order /send my BIL (Heidi’s husband) his annual cheese from Point Reyes. I’ll do that soon. And I need to get 2 GC’s for my daughter. One for the garden center and the other for Gap. She pretty much buys whatever she needs so gifts are a challenge. And besides, she told me she dislikes Christmas so there’s that.

I’m still not reading any news, and I feel better for it. I do catch a headline here and there and then freak out( like Kennedy as head of Health. I mean he’s a fu**king anti-vaccer. It’s all too much and somewhat feels like an alternate reality. Maybe I should read Carlos Castenada again.