Category Archives: velcade

Frugal Friday

Posted in Blood test, budgeting, budgets, California, frugalism, velcade by

Well, the bad news is his platelets did go way down to 31, so the infusion will be on Saturday. Overall, this cycle has been much better but it’s still a very hard chemo regime. The plan is I’ll take him down and my daughter will get him. I suppose I could go shopping or something but I don’t really do that. ( well, if I could go into Louis Vuitton I would).:)

Some wins this week.

I got gas at Costco, which was 3.79, so that’s the lowest around.

The Tartine baguette I made was delicious and almost all gone. I do have some ww bread in the freezer so I’ll pull that out for the week.

I went to Costco on Monday, mostly for milk and the above WW bread, but of course, I came out with more. I forgot coffee so I either need to go in for that or just buy it at Starbucks.

Some losses:

I found a fresh mozzarella roll stuffed in the back of the fridge. It’s way outdated and also a Bourisin cheese. Usually, both of those things get used up quickly so maybe with Thanksgiving they got pushed to the back.

Today is a dex day, so I’ll do some extra things around the house. I made some roast chicken breasts last night with potatoes dauphinoise so there are some leftovers. I still might make a pizza dough though.

That’s about it at chez moi!!

Thankful Thursday

Posted in Blood test, bread, budgets, California, cancer, cooking, Gratitude, instant pot recipes, velcade, Walking by

I’m thankful I can be flexible when I need to be because:

I woke up grumpy this morning and decided to NOT walk. That’s kind of a big deal for me not to do something when it’s planned. but I figured Fuck it, I’m not walking. I will go to the gym after Velcade and call it good.

I’m thankful the library is such a wonderful resource. I’ll get my holds after the gym.

Last night, we had homemade lentil vegetable soup with the Tartine baguette. The baguette came out very well, and I’m pleased. As I’ve said, his recipe seems to always work. It may be that his hydration is spot on. I used the instant pot for the lentil soup and it was done in 20 minutes of pressure time.

I’m over the moon that Barclay is doing so well. No nosebleeds and his energy is good. Today he’s getting labs so I’m hopeful they are still above the 100 mark for platelets. So grateful for this round being so much easier.

I’m grateful, most of what I wanted to get for Christmas is done. I feel like this is the last year of doing presents even though I didn’t do a whole lot this year. It still adds up and we’re definitely towing the line with money. I think I’ll formulate a plan and write it down so I can reference it for next year. Like maybe Amazon gift cards? Plus be more diligent with the budget.

I’m thankful it’s only 16 days to the Winter Solciste.

Mid week

Posted in books, California, velcade by

We are having beautiful weather. It’s definitely cold at night but the days are mid 60’s. The oak leaves are golden yellow and most are still hanging on. It’ll be the next big storm that will bring them down.

B’s labs came back pretty good really. Platelets at 120 so that’s a huge improvement. Hemoglobin was 9.4 so also good. He’s only had a little nose blood. So that means his platelets are holding. Tomorrow is another lab so we’ll see then but it is very encouraging.

I plan on swimming today since it’ll be my last chance this week as I have Velcade tomorrow. After Velcade tomorrow, I’ll go down to the library and get my holds. The new Ina Garten came in for me so I’m excited to read that.

I added a few ornaments to the tree and today or tomorrow will get the other box out and see what I want to add. The simpler the better.

I’ve made a sourdough using Tartines recipe. It seems his recipe works the best for me of all the ones I’ve tried. Before I leave this morning I’m going to shape it into baguettes. He actually uses a different recipe for baguettes but I’m just using the basic country loaf one. We’ll see how it comes out.

I’ve stayed away from most of the news regarding trump. His cabinet picks seem crazy but that’s what he is. It still makes me so sad that this is what this county wanted. Look out folks for the incredible increase of food, clothing, gas everything due to the tariffs. I get actually sick to my stomach thinking about him placing his hand on the bible and taking the oath of office. A convicted felon( which now he’s trying to get thrown out), an ex-president who lost the last election and tried to force a coup. It just makes me sick. And if he pardons those J 6’sers, OMG, what have we done. ( we’ll not those who voted for the reasonable, conscientious choice) but we as a collective. 😦 So sad.

Well, on that note, I’m off to the pool.

Frugal Friday

Posted in budgets, California, frugalism, velcade by

So far, I’ve resisted the siren call of Black Friday. There are, of course, things we need and want. Our ceiling fan died on Wednesday so we’re going to have to buy one of those. But not today. I like to be out of that flow.

Thanksgiving was mellow and everyone enjoyed the meal. There were leftovers to send home with my son and his partner. We have some for today and then that’s it. We generally do not do a lot of leftovers.

We watched Planes, Trains, and Automobiles and it was a fun Thanksgiving movie.

This has been a low-spend week. I did a small shop here in town at the Holiday Market, but it was odds and ends. I spent $75 but $21 of that was Mumm Champagne. Earlier in the week I bought B the AirPod Pro 2 because it has a hearing enhancement and he needs it. I got a great deal at almost $100 off. It ended up with tax $158.

I’m not planning on driving out anywhere so that will save gas too until next week. I think I’ll just stick to my usual swimming plan and the gym.

I do need to make an Allstate payment and will do that Monday.

I pulled out some of the Christmas stuff and will decide what to put on the tree. Last year I put very few ornaments on and we all liked that better. I don’t need to buy anything at all, like lights. I’ll probably get out the tree this weekend. I miss having a live tree but Tahoe actually wasn’t issuing Christmas tree permits this year.

I’ll go to Costco after my Velcade on Thursday. I need eggs and HP ink. I’m sure other things will find their way into my cart.

Frugal Friday and other things.

Posted in budgeting, budgets, California, cancer, cash envelopes, frugalism, Uncategorized, velcade by

So I spoke to soon. The shots are starting today at the infusion center. My daughter is taking him today and tomorrow as I have my Flu/COVID shot today and almost always have muscle aches and feel lousy for 24+ hours. Then Sunday the center is closed so then I will take him on Monday. The only time they had Tuesday was 4:30 and I said no way am I driving Ca 65 at that time. So I do hope they can change it otherwise he’ll have to skip that day. He absolutely cannot drive himself as he’s really not computing.

It is very stressful to have so many appointments. I really dislike having so much scheduled. It makes me kind of crazy. But hopefully, after these shots at the infusion center, they will be at home for the next cycle. Plus, this week I have Velcade so then the next 2 days are Dex days and I don’t drive or go out.

Back to what’s frugal. Well, after Stanford, which cost quite a bit for food, gas, and hotel, hopefully, this week has been better. I filled the Santa Fe up at Costco, but since we’re driving so much that will add to gas expenses. Then I shopped at our Holiday Market and that’s always more expensive than Winco. But I needed stuff so that’s that. I particularly wanted miso to make B miso soup. I spent $55 on food. Then earlier in the week I spent $47 at Bel Air. Again these are stores I try and avoid but if I’m not in Rocklin then I have to make do. I will go to Costco next week to get milk etc. B is drinking a lot of milk and using it in protein shakes.

A number of annual bills are coming due and the the biggest will be house insurance. We still haven’t gotten the Fair Plan cost which I hope comes soon. Our annual PO Box is due and that’s a whopping $182 just for a box at the PO. I did have the money in a cash envelope at least. Plus Barclay’s motorcycle insurance is due. He is going to have to sell his bike at some point but not right now so the insurance needs to be paid.

How frugal was your week?? Some weeks are definitely better than others.

Thankful Thursday

Posted in budgeting, budgets, California, cash envelopes, Gratitude, velcade by

Even though I slept terribly, I still got up at 5:15 to walk. I’m thankful I have the energy to do that. We got to the park at 5:40 and the two ladies were there. They are nice and don’t bother me. By the time we were almost done 6 more people had showed. I’m not sure what the story is about more people early as the weather is not hot and the sunrise is almost 6:30. I guess this will change soon as it gets darker. However, the one older lady that I’m not super fond of is the one last year that came at 6. It was dark and she never used a flashlight even when I asked her to because you can’t see people. oh well, people:(

I’m thankful my drive to infusion was uneventful. The other day on Hwy 65( the one I take) there was a horrible accident with a pedestrian. I’m glad I didn’t see it.

I’m thankful that I have some extra money in my cash envelopes because we need it till the end of the month.

I’m thankful I’m not losing hair like I was. I probably lost half my hair. So now when I comb it there’s a normal amount of hair. I think it was Dex, but it may have been Velcade too or both.

There’s a lot going on with B’s cancer and I’ll do an update soon. I’m still a little shell shocked so I need a day or two to get a grip. But I am thankful the doctor pursued a long shot and she was right. I’ll explain later in a separate post.

I’m thankful our kitties are safe and bring us joy. It is sad when cats go missing and I’m sure the neighbor is upset.

I’m very grateful Mr Owl left me this. B found it!!

Thankful Thursday

Posted in books, bread, California, cancer, cooking, Gratitude, husband, velcade, Walking by

No reports back on the biopsy. I thought for sure, we’d hear something yesterday. So waiting, waiting. Not that I’m expecting anything but bad news but at least we’ll know what the official diagnosis is. 😦

After that, no doctor appts until next Friday and that’s with his NP from his transplant team so I’m not sure how that will play out. The new oncologist appt isn’t until the week after that so it’s definitely a waiting game. Wait, Wait, Wait.

Things to be thankful for though:

We are getting LOTS of tomatoes and I plan on having my favorite tomato and mayonnaise sandwich later today.

I have Velcade this morning and I am always thankful for efficient and knowledgeable nurses. After that, I will go down to the library and pick up my hold.

I’m thankful we had some days of cooler weather but we’re on an upward swing again. It was nice and cool this morning walking. There were LOTS of people walking even at 6am. I guess it’s the summer crowd.

I’m thankful my son has a nice apartment and is staying cool especially since he just down with covid. It’s the first time he’s had it. I miss him being here so I can hover over him!!!:) But he’s a grown man and knows what to do.

I’m thankful the sourdough boule I made yesterday came out perfect. The last two were dismal and I had to throw them out. I read on the problem and I wasn’t letting my starter mature enough. So I’ve been feeding twice a day and it’s very active now. I plan on doing another one soon. Also, with the heat, proofing time and bulk fermentation are different because it’s warm, so that was a factor as well.

Simple Sunday

Posted in California, cancer, cooking, Flylady, instant pot recipes, Myeloma, Political things, velcade by

It’s not so hot but there’s more humidity because of some cloud cover. Still, it’s not going to be over a 100 so that’s something. I think the rest of the week is in the 90’s.

I went to the gym and did some weights and then headed over to Target to get a few things. It wasn’t very busy which is odd.

This coming week is not too filled with appts. I have Velcade on Thursday and that’s it. I do plan to swim at least one time maybe two. I have a hold to pick up at the library so I’ll do that too.

I made some Instant Pot polenta yesterday and it was yummy. I love polenta. The recipe called for 4 1/2 c water but it was too much so 4 c. is what I’ll do next time. It was one of the reasons I wanted the IP again was to make polenta. So easy.

Not sure what the rest of the day holds. Maybe a quick tidy. I used the steam mop yesterday after vacuuming so that’s done. Flylady zone is the bathroom so I will mop the floor with my microfiber mop, not the steam mop.

Other than that, not much! It’s somewhat depressing around here with the impending diagnosis out there. I guess we’ll just carry on. After all, what choice do you have really?

On the political front, I’m hoping Republicans don’t start in with this assassination attempt being somehow from Democrats. I believe the shooter was registered as Republican. Also, trump was fist pumping and saying fight, fight, as he was escorted away. So where’s that going? Still, violence is not the answer but banning A-15 rifles just might be.