Happy Easter weekend, everyone.
Roxie: so glad to see your gratitude posts everyday. It must be difficult for you to peck it out after your surgery. I hope you are doing well today and will be able to be pain free soon.
Tillie; I always look forward to your posts. You manage to get things done every day and encourage the rest of us to keep at it.
LR: Enjoy the weekend. You have been working hard and deserve to focus on celebrating.

It is 67 and sunny today so I am going to work a little outside cleaning up the backyard.
The new floor mats look great in the kitchen. I'll see how easy they are to keep clean and how long they last. At least I won't have to shake out rugs and run them through the washer.
When I went to spritz my little seedlings with water this morning, I saw that one of my housemates had knocked them out of the window. I don't know how many are left as they have not yet started to sprout. I may have to start over with a new batch.
Yesterday, I got really discouraged at the overwhelming number of tasks I have left to do. But I can't let that stop me. I have to keep plugging away at it every day.
I got my roommate assignment for my Albuquerque trip. It's going to be good for me to get away from this house for a little while.
Have a joyful and peaceful Easter weekend.

Good morning everybody 🙂

Miss hearing from those who have gone silent 🙁

My plans for today.....
Do nothing, go nowhere.

Wishing you all some fun today. 😀

Roxie, so glad to hear from you after your surgery. Best wishes for your recovery.

Tillie, you indicated you have an "itch" to declutter after seeing your other half's stuff. Too bad you don't live close by me. I'd love to have you around to help "scratch out" some of my clutter! : ) Thanks for the Good Friday wishes.

Barb, I read your posts on the spirituality thread and have benefited from them. Looking forward to reading more of them.

I didn't post any goals today, but I did have a plan and followed it. Nothing elaborate. Worked some more on cleaning out my vehicle, met a friend for lunch, got some more paperwork into the mail, and touched base with the management on an ongoing maintenance problem I'm having. The latter part is really good for me, because in the past I might have just put up with it or might have delayed reporting the issue.

I probably won't get much decluttering done this weekend because of special holiday activities and other special scheduled events. I have two pretty full days ahead.

I hope everyone has a great weekend.

Good morning 🙂

Hi Roxie 🙂
Thank you for letting us know how you are.
Happy the surgery is all over with now.
Take care and heal well now. (((hugs)))

Hi Barb 🙂

Hi LR2014 🙂
YEA!!! WAY TO GO!!! for buying Buried In Treasures! 😀

My plans for today are few and simple.
Wash some dishes, wash my hair.
As always, cat related tasks like scoop litter boxes, fresh water and filled kibble bowls.
We sent a lot of time outside yesterday then all the cats went inside and took long naps.
Want to find some things to donate to the charity thrift shop. Keep looking around through everything but not having much luck finding anything much to donate.
Living with and looking at all his stuff makes me want to declutter but I can't declutter his stuff and all my stuff has already been evaluated, sorted and organized.
I have to be careful because some years ago I had reduced all my stuff down to just the bare minimum and I was not happy living like a refugee with owning nothing much.

Happy Good Friday! 😀

Roxie: I'm glad your surgery went well. Take care of yourself.

I am okay. painkiller just starting to wear off. will rest today

Hi, all. Thanks for the "forgiving" spirit (re. yesterday's post). In case you don't know, that was only one goof from yesterday. When I went back later in the day to post my day's goals, I first started reading something on another thread. Then I accidentally posted my goals for yesterday on that thread instead of posting them here. I'm glad that one of my goals for yesterday was to not criticize myself!

Barb, after all that hard work you've been doing, I can only imagine the feeling of coming home to the Great Kitty Caper. I confess that I couldn't help but chuckle at the image of them doing all that mischief, but I'm sorry you had to deal with the aftermath of it!

Tillie, I like the image of your blooms doing "the wave." I do hope you feel better soon.

I already did laundry and a few other things this morning. My "biggie" for the day so far is that I bought a copy of "Buried in Treasures." I'd heard many of you speak well of it. I'm finding that it is "out of stock" at most of the bookstores around here (and I'm near a big metropolitan area), so getting my hands on a copy was no small feat (and now that bookstore is out of stock as well, since I bought the last one they had). Yes, I know I could have ordered it online, but I wanted one in hand.soon.

Goals for the rest of the day: Add to my gratitude list, put away the laundry, and continue to work on cleaning out my vehicle.

Have a good day, all.

Hi 🙂

Hi Roxie (((HUGS))) 😀

Hi LR2014 🙂
We all make posting mistakes. Even though this message board is not forgiving (we can't edit) the readers here are all very forgiving. 😉

Hi Barb 🙂
What fun! Watching the seedlings grow in their tiny pots. 😀
Life without our fur babies would be miserable, sad and lonely. But they can be exasperating at times. LOL 😀
Good luck with your plans for today and WAY TO GO! for doing enjoyable activities. 😀

Hi Everybody!!! 😀

Thanks for the well wishes. 🙂
Still having to lay low.
My lilac hedge blooms in a wave, starting at one end and moving along the line to the other end.
I keep a fresh sprig inside here in a small glas of water.
So many wonderful memories of Granma and me together are brought up fresh and true by the scent and sight of lilacs.
My plans for today are for me & the cats to get outside once it warms up a little and enjoy the fresh air & sunshine together.
The cats usually don't stay out very long. I come in to find them all napping in their favorite spots. Silly animals. 🙂

Have a GREAT Thursday everybody! 😀

Good morning, all.
Hope you feel better soon, Tillie.
I'll be thinking of you, Roxie, as you go through your surgery praying all goes smoothly.
LR, that's OK. It added a bit of humor to our day.
Karl, I'm glad you are getting out and about for events.

Well, yesterday did not go well for me. The return of winter weather had me feeling sluggish and achy.
I have to start back in the kitchen again this morning. I let the dishes pile up. While I was at the grocery store, the dogs got into the garbage and spread it all over the floor. They cannot open the cabinet to get to the bin, so I know Frank Kitty, who is adept at opening cabinet doors, was in on the caper. A new box of scouring pads was opened and I am finding them all over the house. I am sure they looked like some kind of new cat toys to him.
I took my little boy dog to an obedience class last night and he did very well. I needed to be out with other people who enjoy the same activities that I do. That put me in a better attitude to begin today.
The trash men picked up what was in the toter, so I can begin filling it again.
My reward today is planting the tomato and tomatilla seeds in their little peat pots. I will cover them with a dome and place them in a sunny window.

Just saw your post, Tillie. Hope you feel better soon! I like your idea about "talking back" to those negative voices from the past. Helpful concept.

That was embarrassing. Explanation...

I'd copied the last few posts into a Word doc on my computer so I could read them offline, make comments, write my stuff, then delete it. Then I got a phone call (lengthy conversation) while in the middle of doing my writing, so I saved the doc in a temporary spot (is deleted by now) and shut down the computer. When I turned it back on and finished my writing and did a copy and paste, without noticing I copied and pasted the whole thing! (It's what I get for not proofreading.)

Oops. Sorry about that.

Roxie Posted: 16 April 2014 - 05:59 AM
I went for the pre-op, stopped to sell my soda cans, and stopped at the health department to inquire about assistance in quitting smoking. They gave me a phone number to call.

I finished unloading things from my car from the other day, then I loaded some recycle materials into my car for later today. I stopped at Big Lots and found another tall kitchen garbage bin to use for plastic recycling. Also got a new litter box, some microfiber rags, a kneeling pad to protect my knees.

Today I need to unload the dishwasher, sweep the floors, fill the new litter box, and mop part of the kitchen floor. In a few minutes I will round up remaining garbage to take to the outside bin, then wheel the bin down to the street before pickup today.

I have a dental appointment this afternoon which I'll combine with filling up my gas tank and going to the recycle center.

How is everyone?

Karl Posted: 15 April 2014 - 03:28 PM
I have plans for tonight, so I won't be at tonight's chat. Hope there's critical mass without me.

Roxie Posted: 15 April 2014 - 09:04 AM
Today my only real plans are to go to the pre-op appointment this afternoon. I'll see what else I can get done. Feeling tired and groggy, too.

Barb Posted: 15 April 2014 - 08:43 AM
Good morning, all!
I woke up to snow on the ground this morning. It isn't nearly as beautiful in April as it was the first of December.
Karl: I am glad you found your recovery disks for your computer and hope you can get it up and running again. A few years ago I had to get a cell phone for my job traveling all over the state and having to travel one lane back-country roads in treacherous weather conditions. Some of the roads have deep, wooded ravines on one or both sides. I was using the cell phone more and more and the house phone less and less. Today I only use the cell.
You will do what is most cost effective for you. A cell phone carrier can usually transfer your old house phone number to the new cell.
It is something to consider.
Diane: I turned 60 last year and am still working on self-talk issues. Both my parents had low self image problems and, parenting the only way they knew how, passed that along to all their children. It is daily work and a conscious effort to stop the bad messages midstream and rephrase them in a positive self-affirming light. Having a cognitive behavior based mental health counselor help you list your worst broken records and practice phrases to replace them can be a big help. It has helped me, even though I am still a work in progress.
You are a beautiful, talented, unique person who deserves to live a comfortable, enjoyable life. You have been such a blessing to this message group.
Back to cleaning my entry! Have a great day, everyone!

Good morning, everybody.

Barb: Your comments to Diane yesterday were helpful to me, too. Thanks.

Roxie: Will certainly be thinking about you tomorrow (and in the days following as well, of course)! Yea for steps toward quitting smoking. Best wishes with everything!

Karl: Missed you at the chat last night, but having plans is cool. (Hope they were fun ones.)

Me: Following up on yesterday. it was kind of a rollercoaster day in terms of emotions. Yesterday started off OK. Then later in the morning, I discovered a couple of (very fixable) paperwork items that needed to be taken care of that I'd overlooked. That, plus another small thing or two, seemed to set off a barrage of negative thinking. Life seemed doom and gloom (an exaggeration of reality, of course, but that's the way I felt at the time). Things got better later in the day, though.

Had a fun lunch with a family member, and that helped. A local repair shop finished putting that tool (see April 12 story) back together. for free! Works now. (Yea!) Then I went to storage unit to pick up a box of things I want to go through (with an eye toward what I can discard, loan out, sell, or give away). I eventually finished my posted goals, including getting a decent-sized bag of clothes ready for Goodwill. The best part about the clothes is that some of those items were clothes I've had for (literally) decades; in the past had always found some not-good excuse to hang on to them. This go around, I was able to be much more objective, and now I have a little more closet space (and more empty hangers)! I also was able to get myself to make a phone call I was dreading making. (It wasn't a bad phone call. I just sometimes dread business-related phone calls, period.) After all was said and done, I felt like I'd made progress yesterday.

Will post today's goals later.

Have a great day, everyone!

Good morning 🙂

Hi LR2014 🙂
Hope all your plans are going as planned. 😀

Hi Barb 🙂
Happy your seeds have arrived and you didn't have a migraine.
Sorry about the cold snap. 🙁
Give Frank Kitty a hug for me. 🙂

Hi Diane 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! 🙂
For all you are accomplishing!
When negative voices are in your head, drown them out by repeating positive phrases over and over again to yourself.
Eventually this will become a habit that you will do every time those negative voices start up.
I do this every day to shut up my mother's negative destructive voice. Talk back. (((hugs)))

Hi Karl 🙂
Hope you had fun last night. 😀
Good luck finding a truck or station wagon to get that cabinet.

Hi Roxie 🙂
WAY TO GO!!!! 😀
You sure have accomplished a great deal.
Do you have all the food and beverages you need in the house?
Please try to peck out a message to us to let us know how you are doing. (((HUGS)))
Best wishes and we will be thinking of you.

So happy to be able to post today! 😀
Was not feeling well at all.
Lots of things need doing around here but I am still not up to doing them.
Have been enjoying watching the lilac hedge bloom. 😀
Wishing you all a pleasant Wednesday! 😀

I went for the pre-op, stopped to sell my soda cans, and stopped at the health department to inquire about assistance in quitting smoking. They gave me a phone number to call.

How is everyone?

I have plans for tonight, so I won't be at tonight's chat. Hope there's critical mass without me.

Today my only real plans are to go to the pre-op appointment this afternoon. I'll see what else I can get done. Feeling tired and groggy, too.

Good morning, all!
I woke up to snow on the ground this morning. It isn't nearly as beautiful in April as it was the first of December.
Karl: I am glad you found your recovery disks for your computer and hope you can get it up and running again. A few years ago I had to get a cell phone for my job traveling all over the state and having to travel one lane back-country roads in treacherous weather conditions. Some of the roads have deep, wooded ravines on one or both sides. I was using the cell phone more and more and the house phone less and less. Today I only use the cell.
You will do what is most cost effective for you. A cell phone carrier can usually transfer your old house phone number to the new cell.
It is something to consider.
Diane: I turned 60 last year and am still working on self-talk issues. Both my parents had low self image problems and, parenting the only way they knew how, passed that along to all their children. It is daily work and a conscious effort to stop the bad messages midstream and rephrase them in a positive self-affirming light. Having a cognitive behavior based mental health counselor help you list your worst broken records and practice phrases to replace them can be a big help. It has helped me, even though I am still a work in progress.
You are a beautiful, talented, unique person who deserves to live a comfortable, enjoyable life. You have been such a blessing to this message group.
Back to cleaning my entry! Have a great day, everyone!

Karl: Funny about the AT&T truck. Keep us posted!

Diane: Glad you are reminding yourself that you deserve love and respect. A friend of mine sometimes points out that at times I say mean things to myself that I would never say to another person. She has a point. I am slowly but surely learning the truth that I am loveable just as I am.

Barb: Hope the headache never did come. Yea for the seeds coming in!

Some of my goals for today: Add to my gratitude list, select some outgrown clothes to go to Goodwill or a charity clothes closet, pay certain bills, join tonight's chat if possible, "consult" the plans for the week I started working on yesterday.

A friend came over to visit today. He drove me to my previous home, where we made a new attempt to load the cabinet that didn't fit in the previous friend's car; it didn't fit in his, either. Unless I find a friend with a truck real soon, it's going to be a donation. My former housemate says she can use it. We then drove to my storage unit, where I loaded a few boxes of stuff that I can use at my new home.

We happened to be following an AT&T vehicle. To my amusement, my friend got the driver to pull over so he could ask advice about my telephone situation. The story is that the phone company is only responsible for providing service up to the external box at the housing complex, and I should contact whoever's in charge of the complex to make sure that it gets from there to the specific townhouse that I'm in. I guess I should ask my housemate to do that, since she's the one who's officially renting the place.

Hello ladies. Today was the last warm day so tried to finish things outside. I finished 2nd coat of white roof coating over patched areas. I sprayed bug killer on ground around deck and vines that always get bugs. I made wells around all bushes and trees and watered all. It was a weird day, warm and but high overcast, looked like rain at times, none forcast. I worked all day doing small things. In chat last night Tillie said we deserve love and respect. I repeated that "I deserve love and respect" today. In order for me to have a clean organized life, I need to change my inner talk, it feels like work to me, to change my inner thoughts. All in all it was a good day.

My garden seeds came today! I have little peat pots to start the tomatoes in.
This morning started well. Then the temperature began to drop. I do not do well with extreme falling temperatures. We had 70 degrees yesterday and it will reach 28 by tonight. Snow is predicted. So far we have just had rain. I put on a sweatshirt and started the furnace. At least I don't have a migraine or migraine aura this time, so it will be OK. I just don't have the energy and focus that I have when the weather is sunny and warm.
The entry cleaning did not get finished. I will start in again tomorrow.
I roasted a turkey breast to eat on this week. It took about 3 1/2 hours to cook and the oven helped keep the house warm.
Frank Kitty has been very needy today. He goes through spells when he wants to be picked up, talked to and cuddled. Other times he goes off and sleeps for hours in the bottom of the closet. He is a neurotic little boy, but I love him.

Good luck with your "natural remedy" search, Tillie. Thanks for all the encouragement you give to me.

Goals for today: I'm splitting my list into two parts. I didn't post "Part One" this morning, because I was busy doing it. I needed to get some essential paperwork finished and put into the mail, and I did that already. I also needed to go to the grocery store and get some more healthy food that I had run out of; had been eating too much food that's not-so-good for me the last couple of days simply because I hadn't yet been to the store to get a better selection. That's done now, too. Just got home. "Part Two" of my goals: Cook and eat some of that food I just bought, add to my gratitude list, and then work on creating my list of goals for the next several days. I need to think about setting those goals, but not over-think about setting those goals. Overthinking is one of the things that has gotten me into a lot of trouble in the past. I can spend so much time trying to figure out what I "should" do or the "best way" to do it or the "best order" to do it in that I wear myself out just thinking about it! I get tired, bummed, and overwhelmed, and nothing really gets done. So for me, no "overthinking" today!

Have a great day, everybody!

Good morning everybody 🙂

YEA! Roxie 🙂
You are doing a lot of really great preparation. 😀

My brain is foggy and my body feels all rubbery like Gumby.
Need to clean this house up some but just want to sit and stare. lol
Been reading some articles online about natural remedies for bug and pest control. Some suggestions are pretty funny, like getting owls to come eat your mice. HaHaHa
Thinking that I will focus my tasks today to the very basics and if I get more done then great.
Will clean the bathroom for sure and sweep and vacuum the floors.
Hoping to wash the floors and vacuum dust off some things too.
I guess I should get dressed & brush my hair and all that kind of stuff too.
Will probably fall asleep if I sit down any time today.

You all have a GREAT Monday! 😀

Wow, Roxie. You really sound like you're getting things together for this surgery. Glad you're not squeamish. (I am usually pretty squeamish about some types of things.)

I do agree with you about the cramping/hydration thing. I have been trying to buy some of those sports drinks a little more often lately (Gatorade-type drinks). The main problem with my foot seems to be something I've had before (on the other foot) called "turf toe." I'll leave you to look it up if you wish. I know some of the things I'm doing that are aggravating that. I just have to remember to not do those things!

I have much to do between now and Thursday operation day.

Good morning. I'll probably break my posts into two or more, I'm so gabby today.

Diane, I thank you for the swimtop idea. Congrats on skipping the thrift store and craft thingee, and working on the roof. You're doing well!

Good morning, everyone!

Wow, Diane. "Car load to Goodwill." That is very inspiring to me!

Barb: Yea for the productive work day!

Tillie: I hear ya on the Benadryl. Funny. I actually listed "Benadryl" on my gratitude list yesterday!

Following up on my goals from yesterday: I did all of them except one. I spent more time than expected with my friend, and that's a positive thing in my book. (Yes, Tillie, we did have a good time... or at least I did. Thanks!) The one goal I didn't do can get put on my list for tomorrow or Wednesday; I was getting sleepy last night (probably from the Benadryl) and was feeling relaxed by the time 9pm rolled around, and I decided to hit the sack really early.

Goals for today: Spend time with family, work toward getting an important piece of paperwork ready to go into the mail, add to my gratitude list, and be at the chat tonight if possible.

Have a great day, everyone!

Good morning all. Tillie, yes pollen is really bad, hope you do ok with drowsiness.
Another beautiful day today. Still only 27 degrees, so too cold to do anything outside so may just have to vacuum, one of least favorites, really dislike the noise. Will also do dishes from yesterday. I have so much more energy when it is sunny, like today. Hopefully my list will keep me focused on priorities.
Thanks for all the posts. Enjoyed reading about priorities, and doing things we dislike, preferring to do things we dislike even if priority is thing we dislike, made me want to vacuum just to get it over with.
See you all tonight.

Good morning 🙂

Hi Diane 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! 😀
for all you accomplished!
Wonderful that you got out too. 🙂
BIG (((hugs))) for passing up the thrift shop. 😉
Great idea, a bathing suit to solve the bra problem for Roxie. 🙂

Hi Barb 🙂
WAY TO GO!!! 😀
So happy you were able to get outside to enjoy working on your yard.
After this last Winter, we all need to spend time outside playing/working to recover. 😀

Hi LR2014 🙂
Hope you had a wonderful time visiting with your friend. 😀

Finally had to break down and take Benadryl for the allergies. That makes me very sleepy and goofy and scatter brained.
Need to take more today.
My plans for today are simple but will be hard for me to do since I can't concentrate. LOL
His laundry, 3 washer loads.
Water the grass.
Clean the kitchen, wash dishes, wipe counter. etc.
Will probably fall asleep but hope to be awake and alert for Sunday night chat. 😀

Keep up all the GREAT progress and enjoy all this lovely Spring weather.

Wow, sounds like everyone is really busy and getting things done.
Roxie, do you have any swim suit tops? the kind with permanent straps and built in bra, goes to waist? I can step into mine and pull up and put arms in arm holes. I discovered this when I had rollers in my hair.
I have been so busy getting things done. I have worked lots of hours spraying weeds, reclaiming my deck, took car load to goodwill, bought roof coat at Home depot, across from goodwill, and have been putting it on the areas I patched previously with the black stuff. Roof coat is a thick white rubbery almost like paint, it is difficult to get off face and arms I have discovered. Went to visit my friend at a craft fair she was in today, came home without going to thrift store.
I wanted to go to another craft fair in Bend, but chose to come home and keep working on roof. The white looks so much better than the black and will keep trailer so much cooler this summer. I want to spray more weeds tomorrow, mow lawn, more roof coating, and be at chat at 5.
Have kept dishes done. 3 loads of laundry, organized more stuff. I have gotten quite a bit done and am physically tired, yes the good tired.