Category Archives: swimming

Friday Things

Posted in budgets, California, camping, cooking, Death, swimming, travel by

I have most of my budget ready for April. Some DMV items (Santa Fe)need to be paid for, and I need to do a smog on the Santa Fe. Also, the next installment for Allstate will come due in April. I ordered a replacement battery for my Dyson 8 from Amazon. I haven’t ordered too much over the last few months, so I’m pleased with that. Amazon is almost a necessity for things like that. I also need to order the porta-potty for camping when we go up to Tahoe because we’ll be in my son’s tent for that trip. There are very nice bathrooms at Nevada Beach, but that doesn’t help me at night 🙁

I plan on doing a freezer challenge to lower food costs. Last month(end of Feb and March through the 25th), came in right under $400. That includes a Costco shop, which usually (always) includes some stock-up items. So overall, I’m pleased.

The send Dad off in New Brighton ended up being a little spendy, but not bad considering the room didn’t have a microwave to heat food up. I used Starbucks GC when I could, and that saved some money. My daughter also paid for a few things. The biggest expense is a hotel room, of course. That’s one reason I loved Rubi because over the course of the time we traveled, staying in Rubi covered the cost of the RV vs hotels. Well, sadly, that is not my life now. Of course, I still need to sell Rubi and just haven’t bothered yet, especially since my son stays out there when he is here.

I’m already checking on hotels in Napa for a one-nighter. I wish I could stay at the Fairgrounds campground that B and I loved so much, but it’s not possible. I found a very nice room for around $200, and it does have a mini kitchen and a seating area, which is the one thing I would have liked in the other room. My daughter works T-F, so it has to be a Sunday night. I’ll have to see whether I can swing it even with it going on a card with the other things I have this month.

We have a change in the weather coming next week, cooler and rain. This has been such an early spring.

I plan on going to the pool this morning if I can get going. Since lap swimming ends at 9:15, I need to be there earlier. I’ll see how I feel by 7:30. Yesterday, I washed sheets and pulled out my summer curtains to iron. I also made up some chicken enchiladas with green chile sauce. That used up some frozen chicken. Then I pulled some black beans that had been frozen in the Souper cubes and heated them up. Very tasty.

My daughter has been weed-eating as everything is growing so fast. Last year, with Barclay in hospice, the weeds took over, and I had to hire someone to come and do it because they were out of control. This year, she’s keeping up on it. She also planted the 2 lavender plants I got at Costco. I don’t do much in the yard these days, but I love sitting out every day looking around at how beautiful the yard is and how fortunate we are to live here.

There’s Chester checking things out and the wisteria.

Happy Spring!

Posted in budgeting, budgets, California, camping, cooking, swimming by

Spring is officially here, and it sure is where I live. Northern California, in the Sierra Nevada foothills, is a wonderful place to live. All around the oak trees are blooming, daffodils are up, my wisteria is just starting to break out.

I’ve had a productive couple of days. I did go to the pool yesterday, and it was nice. I shared a lane, but the pool was not overly busy, which is always a plus.

From there, I went back to Costco to get more lavender plants, alas, they were all sold out. I stood there for a minute, wondering how they sold out in 2 days. So, I went and picked a few bottles of Sauvignon, a pair of workout leggings, and some salsa and hummus. I was back home by 10, so that was good. After I rested up, I tidied the house and then decided to tackle the outside windows.

I am very fussy about clean windows. maybe a little OC, really. I wash the inside windows in every zone when it comes up. So the outside ones are harder for me to do. I use Windex Outdoor Spray, which you attach to a hose, and it has a clean, rinse, and off setting. It’s quite easy once you get the hose untangled and ready to use. So I got them all done. I had to switch hoses 3 times, and that is probably the most time involved. I didn’t do my daughter’s room as her windows were open and she has the catio open to one of her windows. I’ll let her know she needs to close it up and do them next week. I felt really good about getting that crossed off my list.

Aftre regrouping I made some pizza dough using my tried and true recipe.

I made half the recipe for 2 dough balls. It comes out perfect every time. I’ll put the other one in the freezer unless my son wants it for tomorrow night. He’ll be staying here to take care of the kitties. Thankfully, they are all over their colds.

Today, I plan on getting the camp chairs in the car and getting B’s Mac Air in a travel bag to take with me. My MacBook died a while back, but this is newer and nicer. I don’t use it at home, though, since I have the new Mac my daughter bought me. I plan on leaving by 9am, and traveling on Sunday is always my preference since there is usually less traffic.

I’ll pack up my meds, clothes, and CPAP tomorrow and then be ready to go.

Next week, my daughter is on Spring break from the college, so I’m hoping we can go check out the tent trailer rental and see if it’s something we’re interested in. I don’t think we’ll know till we see it. I don’t think that place does trade-ins, but where we bought Rubi does, so we may try to fit that in as well. That’s farther down near Sacramento.

I’ve been reading some Agatha Christie books we got at the pet bookstore. She was such an amazing writer. I’m enjoying them and may pop out today to go see if there are any more there. Plus, I need some garden soil to repot some things. Yesterday at Costco, I tried to get the bag there, but it was way too heavy for me. Our nursery is right across the street from the bookstore. So convenient.

20 years ago

Posted in Bone marrow transplant, bread, California, cancer, Multiple myeloma, Myeloma, swimming, Uncategorized by

March 1, 2006, I received my stem cells back. It’s a very anticlimactic moment that goes very quickly. One IV bag. But what it takes to get there is very involved and stressful. A few days prior, I was given Melphalan, which kills everything, and that’s what really takes your body down. Then it usually takes around 10 days for the ‘new cells’ to start to take hold.

I didn’t really eat, but the diarrhea was very real. I remember it was a very rainy and stormy March because I would look out the window, and the rain was going sideways. Barclay was there every day, bringing me clean clothes, at least bottoms. I spent 17 days there in the BM transplant unit at Sutter in downtown Sacramento.

He took care of all the hospital stuff and home stuff. What a guy!! So history, and through that and then Revlimid, Pomalyst, and finally Velcade. And here we are.

This week is my Velcade shot, but I won’t be taking the Dex. It’ll be interesting to see my labs. Will they go up a lot? Well, we won’t know till we do.

I’m so upset at the useless war tRump is doing. He’s like a madman for war or killing, or both, really. When does it stop? Where is the country headed? It scares me, that’s for sure.

I plan on going to the gym this morning. I haven’t been for the last 2 Sundays, so I want to do that, and the VW needs gas. If I’m super ambitious, I’ll go to the car wash too.

Then home stuff is bake the sourdough loaf, tidy things up, and do the LR zone. Next Sunday is Spring Forward with daylight savings. I just wish they would change the law and it would just be one time.

I know I’m not going to the pool tomorrow or Tuesday, as there was a notice up of Roseville Parks and Rec having meetings in the building, and parking was going to be limited. So probably on Wednesday, I’ll go down.

Other than that, same old, same old.

Menu Monday

Posted in books, bread, budgets, California, freezer cooking, meal planning, simple foods, swimming by

I did really well last week with using things up from the freezer. Last night we had Z’s chili with the homemade Rosemary Meyer lemon sourdough I baked. It came out great BTW. I have one more chili in the freezer, but I’ll wait on that for a few weeks. This loaf had nice spring and is delicious.

Tonight I have some frozen chicken to use. I’m leaning toward a casserole of chicken rice and some veggies. The NY Times recipe calls for the rice to be uncooked, so I’ll do that, and it’ll be easier.

Tuesday- I’m thinking burritos with frozen beans and adding cheese, etc.

Wednesday- I think this will be burger night. I have the beef defrosting in the fridge. I plan on using Frugal Girl’s recipe. I probably need to get some lettuce, but I can do that if I go to the pool this week and go across the street to Winco.

Thursday- I think spaghetti or ravioli with meatballs and a salad. I have a #10 can of tomato sauce, so what I might do is make up a big pot of marinara sauce and freeze it in portions. That would use up the can, and I’d have sauce ready to use.

Friday- We might order a pizza. I used up the frozen one< Home Run, which is a Detroit-type pizza. It’s good, but too big for us, so I won’t buy that again unless it’s the mini ones.

Saturday- TBD, not sure what I’ll pull from the freezer, maybe some tilapia.

My son is coming over to work on the barn some more. He took a big load to the dump last time, so he doesn’t need to do that this time. But he is working on decluttering things in there, which is great. Then my daughter and I are going to the pet bookstore and maybe get lunch or some sandwiches to bring home.

Simple Sunday

Posted in California, cooking, freezer cooking, simple foods, swimming, Walking by

A nice walk this morning, although a few people showed up. Still, nice enough, and it was not really cold. The rain is expected this afternoon and looks like it’ll be all week. It’s supposed to get quite cold, too.

I’m not going to the gym this morning either. I’m pretty stiff from my swim, so I’ll rest up. The pool is open on Monday, but I don’t think I’ll go down. I’ll have to see how it goes.

My son is coming up to deal with a garbage run and work on the barn some. Most everything in the barn now is his tools and stuff. I think he’s been getting rid of things, too. Yay for that!

Last night we watched the season finale of Stranger Things ( season 4). Geez, that show is intense. I may need a break for a few days. We had fondue with veggies and some bread. The fondue was an extra that I bought for New Year’s Eve. We also had some rosé prosecco. Yumm.

I’m not sure what I’m going to do today. I have the bathroom zone to do and maybe water my plants and ?? I do need to go drop stuff off at the thrift store, so I may do that because they don’t take donations if it’s raining. It’s not a lot of stuff, but I’d rather get it out of the house and back of the car.

I do want to freezer dive and see what I’m using this week. That’s a priority since it’s jammed packed. I might need to toss some things like bananas that I froze, as they’ve been in there a while. I had been doing that so B could have smoothies, but that’s now 8 months ago, probably time to toss. I could make some banana bread, but my daughter doesn’t really eat that kind of thing, so then I would, and I don’t need the extra calories. 🙁

Here’s a view from my bedroom window.

Going Forward

Posted in Blood test, books, budgeting, budgets, California, cancer, home stuff, library, swimming, velcade by

This week is my Velcade shot. I got an extra week(5 weeks instead of 4), so I could get back to my normal Thursday appt. I’m still having some neuropathy in my feet, even after that length of time. Next time I see Dr. L, I’ll mention this. Then Friday will be my Dex day at home. I’m curious if my numbers go higher with the extra week. I guess I’ll find out.

The pool is closed for 2 days for maintenance, so I’m not sure if I’ll go down there today. Since I’m driving down tomorrow, I sort of hate to use extra gas. On the other hand, I just don’t seem to be getting ‘ahead’ in swimming. My weights I keep up on regularly, so that is all good. Maybe going forward means accepting what I can do and what I do. (sigh) Who knows, right? It seems as if this is a recurring theme for me at this stage of my life. But, hey, I’m very grateful for what I can do!!

Going forward, I’m working on trying new things. It’s hard to do some stuff alone, but I’m determined to try. I did go out by myself for a burger, so that was a tiny thing. I didn’t sit in the car either but went in, so again, a tiny thing, but…

I wrapped up my taxes and submitted. I guess it’s next year that my tax status will change. The year a spouse dies, it’s still married filing jointly, but then it changes the following year. Hopefully, it will stay easy.

Here’s a picture of the upper patio around 3 pm yesterday. And a picture of the firepit on around 4 pm.

The book is from the library, and I was very impressed. Barclay, of course, was hugely influenced by Dylan and had a radio show for 25 years(KVMR) specifically devoted to Dylan. He would have loved this book. His last show was called Jewels and Binoculars after the line in a song.

Yesterday I made the Rancho Gordo King City Pink beans in the crockpot and had them for dinner. I may just do another bean bowl tonight. There is quite a bit to freeze in the Souper Cups. Rancho Gordo just moved into a new building in Napa. I’m curious what it looks like. We always had fun going into the other store, even if it was a little hard to find.

Well, I guess I’d better figure out the day.

What about you? Do you ever feel you should be doing more? Sometimes just accomplishing the smallest thing feels huge. 🙂

Midweek Musings

Posted in bread, budgeting, budgets, California, cooking, swimming by

Well, I did a SWIM, and it went well, so I’m encouraged. I am a little sore this morning( stiff), but I think I’ll try and swim one more time this week.

I’m almost done with the new Dan Brown book,‘ Secret of Secrets’. Not impressed. Too wordy and seems to just go on and on. But I’ll finish it.

My daughters back to work this week at the library, so I have some days alone. I’d like to make a list of some things to do and be a little adventurous. I might drive up to Tahoe and scatter a little more of B’s ashes. Last time we went up. I actually forgot to bring them with me. 🙁

After the pool, I went into Costco to return some sweatpants I bought. They were not a comfortable fit. So I got a few things we needed: eggs, shredded cheese, tortillas, and my daughter wanted some Kombucha. Chicken was on sale with a $5 coupon, so I picked up a pack. Anytime there is a deal at Costco that I like, I get it because that’s where the real savings are.

This is a watercolor my daughter did. I might go over to Goodwill and see if I can find a frame. I also have my old Apple monitor that no one wants to drop off. I tried listing it on Marketplace, but no one was interested.

This was the latest loaf from yesterday. This is after slicing it. I use a Krups slicer I found at the thrift store. I’m freezing quite a bit of bread, it seems. 🙂 I slice it first, then put it in freezer bags. I might feed my starter today, but I won’t mix to start a loaf. I did this one in a banneton. (Well, it’s cold fermentation that uses the banneton). You don’t bake in it.

Simple Sunday

Posted in California, cancer, seasonal things, swimming, Uncategorized, Walking by

I took down most of the Christmas stuff and labeled the boxes. Since I did do a Snoopy tree this year, I labeled those ornaments in a box so next year I can pull them out if I decide to do a separate tree. I kept up the Ikea tree but took the bird ornaments off and put them away. I’ll probably take down the Ikea tree tomorrow or at least sometime this week. It always feels good to get a fresh start, although I do love looking at the different trees and their ornaments.

My daughter got me a compact waffle maker to replace the bigger one we have, so we had waffles last night. I might make some more this morning. Yumm.

This was our Christmas morning bagels and lox. I didn’t get a picture of dinner, but everything turned out delicious.

The pool was insane the other day. All the college kids were there. I forgot that this was winter break between semesters. I’ll have to see if I want to brave it next week. I finally got a lane with one of the college kids, and twice I got mouthfuls of water as he was kicking so hard. It wasn’t fun.

A very cold 36 degrees this morning, but the walk was lovely. The park was all frosty.

Today, I’m planning to go to the gym and then home. I might go back out later if my daughter wants to go to Home Depot. We need some things for the house.

This next week is a repeat of Christmas with New Year’s on Thursday. I have Velcade on Friday, which will be a little weird. I usually go on Thursdays. So my Dex day will be Saturday.

Other than that, I’m looking forward to the next year and hope it’s not as awful as 2025. I’ve had no luck getting a camping spot, so it’s been close to 10 days of trying every day. I’m almost at the first week of July, and I never go to Tahoe in July or August unless it’s a day trip. Too many tourists.

Merry Christmas Eve

Posted in California, cooking, swimming, Uncategorized by

I went down to the pool yesterday only to find it closed. Apparently, when they had an open swim that included kids, some kid mistook the pool for a bathroom. So they have to chlorinate it to a very high level. That’s ok, it’s closed today as well. I’d rather they get it clear to be able to swim without any risk.

I came home straight away, although if I had extra gym clothes, I could have gone to the gym. But I was in my swimming suit.

I finished dusting most everything yesterday and also went down to Holiday to get a few last things.

We had some pretty intense wind overnight and rain, but right now things are calm till the next wave, which is this afternoon. Hopefully, it won’t be too bad. I do hate the wind.

Tomorrow, Christmas looks just as bad, so I told my son and brother not to come up if it’s treacherous. I guess we’ll just have to wait and see. I can cook dinner on the weekend if that’s the case.

Christmas Gus squishing his brother Bean.

Have a wonderful Christmas Eve.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in Blood test, budgets, California, cooking, Myeloma, swimming, Uncategorized by

I seem to have a few really good nights sleeping and then a not-so-good one. There doesn’t seem to be much rhyme or reason, but I am thankful for the nights I do sleep well with minimal disturbances. Using the CPAP has been an interesting experience, and overall, I’m quite pleased with the results. There is no snoring with the machine at all. So that was solved. (That’s a sign of sleep apnea.) I’ve had almost no ‘disturbances’, which is how they calculate sleep apnea, and my blood oxygen has improved, although only slightly. I would still like to try Zepbound, but I’m not sure I could afford it. I know that my prescription plan doesn’t cover it, so it would have to be direct from the drug company. Well, I’m not there with that yet, maybe next year.

I am so thankful we live above the fog. It has been socked in in the valley and even through Auburn. As soon as you hit my exit, it clears to brilliant blue skies. And the temperature is at least 10 degrees warmer here. Unfortunately, I have to go to Sacramento today for my doctor visit, but hopefully that will go quickly. My labs just came in, and my kappa went to 23.9, so up a little, but the ratio came down to 1.85, so there’s some good with that. Overall, I’m pleased it didn’t jump higher.

I was able to get a swim in yesterday, and thankful I had a lane all to myself( a rarity). i do wish I were getting there more, but it seems there’s always something that happens, and I don’t want to drive that extra day. Like tomorrow, I know I’m going to want to stay home as I will have been out 2 days in a row. (sigh)

I am NOT thankful the cat threw up all over my Apple keyboard. 🙁 bad cat!!!

I’m thankful for all the wonderful Christmas B, and I had both alone and then with kids. I remember our first Christmas together. So, I was a freshman at the University of Arizona, and he was a sophomore. I think we did a few gifts that were of the hippie variety, and then our Christmas Eve dinner was brown rice with nuts and raisins in teak bowls. My mother actually sent us those bowls. Then Christmas day, I used our neighbor’s oven to bake a lasagna. Our little apartment didn’t have an oven. That’s how the tradition of the lasagna started. Good memories.