Mt_Rider

This article tells some of what isn't on the recall....like their basic oats and quick oats. (good, we just bought some - unused yet) However, it seems the recall has been expanding since the first listing so stay tuned????? https://www.usnews.com/news/health-news/articles/2024-01-12/quaker-oats-widens-recall-of-granola-bars-cereals-linked-to-salmonella-risk This is from Q O site https://www.quakerrecallusa.com/ MtRider

Becca Anne for your wisdom in choosing. We just went thru that with Mom. As of early Dec, she's in a care home that has 3 levels. Independent Apartments. Assisted Living apartments -( kitchenette but not stove. Microwave/full fridge/sink/cupboards. ) That's the level Mom is at currently. Then there is the locked Memory Unit. More staff. Meals in their unit, not dining rooms. Sounds like Door #3 is appropriate for him. But it may also take some calming meds. The C virus is not helping the situation. Jeepers for your trip in the mess. Maybe double that cuz you're sick too! But, you sound like you've done what you can to prepare for the trip. Maybe check with the Amish (phone?) to make sure THEY can make the trip with this horrid weather?? I'm assuming they don't deliver with horses and wagon? It's exciting to "see" your Indy place coming together! Little Sister....hey, at least the young man is washing his own clothes now! Progress! I admire your ambition and energy in all that cleaning and canning! We're at MINUS 11* ...last I checked. Living room with high ceiling is getting cold. No insulation in the roof. {sigh} Gonna go to bed and get warm. ....and DH has to get his car to mechanic. Got pulled over and his tail lights were out tonite. No ticket but good advice to run with his flashing lights on. That car's electrical system is shutting down. Hope our guy can find and fix at least the necessary parts. I hope he works on electrical! One by one we lose power to overhead lights, dashboard lights (DH uses a flashlite to check speedometer after dark) and now this. Well, we do currently have the $ for it. MtRider

Finally I remembered to fill my 3 scripts as early as allowed. By doing that repeatedly, you have a slow back stock. DH has done that. I just never notice when I'm getting down to the last pills. One of mine I'd hate to go without - the newer one for less fatigue. Another one I can't just quit. Needs to be weaned off slowly. So I'm proposing to my doc to begin that process. The third was is for allergy/sinus. I assume that's not really an issue. Friend is sending me herbal tinctures and a book about their use. I'm really leaning hard towards that ....something I've always been interested in but have only picked up a few things here and there. So I can step out of the pharm stuff as much as possible......but CAREFULLY. MtRider

Trying not to get blown off the hillside today! Gusts made it very COLD outside. I avoided it. Not much noteworthy today. That I can remember, that is....? I am keeping an eye on weather and when our deliveries are expected. Have to rearrange freezer space in the next couple days. DH and I have been sending emails and links back and forth about things we'd need if we lost power in winter. Especially things that did NOT work last May. Heating food or water - did not work. Lighting was fine: even the little tea light candles INSIDE straight-sided jars like peanutbutter or jelly. And a pillar candle that must have had a crooked wick. It melted alllll over - within the jar! No mess. Keeps the air drifting from making the flame flutter as much too. WINTER has truly come to our little piece of the Rockies. MtRider

I've been keeping an eye on InComing Weather. Was super windy here today. I posted a weather alert in RURR.....potential for Polar Vortex. The data kept changing in the past 24 hrs so....not sure they know what it's going to do. Will be more out here in the west but as far as western MN -Iowa . Mebbe. Check it out and be prepared! Got the driveway plowed again. Wow, he was able to scrape down to dirt in most places. That will help melt..if we don't get more snow on top to cover the brown areas. Been researching some "bigger ticket" items that DH and I have been talking about. Made a choice - kinda rushed due to impending severe cold. Not sure delivery will come in time but..... We're so vulnerable w/o power and now we don't have my folks' place to retreat to. Feels kinda weird ...alone. I think your eventual move to Indy will be a very good thing, Jeepers. Since your son/dil up and moved over there! We all gotta have some back-up. MtRider ....God, keep the furnace on, please!

Snowy day....and cold...with some wind. Spent most of it talking on phone with a local friend. We hadn't talked since I went to VA so we had to catch up. DH got home and the trip into town wrecked his back again...which is to say that he's in spasms tonite. I bundled up and took the car down to barnyard. Dog rode along but I was not going to walk her in snow and . Birds were in duckhouse today. No sun and cold. Just lugged down warm water for them. And night food...inside. Tossed down thicker straw. Then I began to shovel the 3+ inches of snow from around their outside pen. So they have space to walk when they get to go outside again. [ don't know how ducks/geese walk around on snow in their "bare feet". ] My fingers where freezing in my best winter work gloves....stopped to pull my fingers down into palm part to warm them. Sheeeeesh, it's bitter type cold. I also took down the snowdrift outside their fence that was beginning to make a ramp for predators to get over the fence. And I shoveled a walk way up the kinda steep berm hill from driveway to the duckhouse. DH has a bad habit of falling on icy areas so this is preventative action here! Colorado...the sun will come out. Snow will start melting and then freeze up again at night. Not good cuz it causes ice alllll over the place. But anyway, by the time dog and I got back inside, I was sweating. So I took a quick shower. My body temperature just doesn't regulate well. But I figured the snow shoveling took the place of a walk for daily exercise. .......the dog had a different opinion. 10pm and it's -2* .... yep, gonna be subzero tonite. MtRider

Hi Cat!!!! MtRider ...glad you're back!!

Hmmm.....I really don't get out much (my trips out-of-state being an unusual exception). But I've felt like I'm fighting something. Throwing all our herbal/vitamin solutions at it. But mine seems to be "just a cold". Thankful! Cuz it doesn't sound like any of you that got this crud are having fun. Praying that all will be recovering and this will be a mild flu/cold season! MtRider ...and for Necie's family issues that take time/compassion/fortitude. BTDT!

I have 2 small ones like the one on the Left....but just a regular wheel on both sides. Not the triple. That's what I was using for the pellet bags. So it does roll up to the next step....rest...pull - roll up to the next step...rest..... The only thing to remember: DON'T get pulled forward and take a header down the steps I've learned (hopefully remember) to stay focused on those stairs. The stairs do have railings on both sides. Problem is....rustic means they are just long wooden poles. Slightly too big around for my small hands to grasp tightly. A number of people have insisted that I have one hand on a railing every time I'm going up or down. That was after the trip-and-fall forward UP stairs...and bashed my eye rim cuz both hands were full. I have put out sincere effort to do that. I tripped again but was able to hang onto the railing and sort of spun around on that arm till I was sitting on the steps. Second from the top....#14. The stairs certainly have been part of an exercise routine these past decades! Esp on laundry days...yes, that's in the basement. Exterior stairs only. Not ever doing laundry on a snowy day! For things much lighter than a 40# bag of wood pellets, I installed a pulley system. (buy pulleys...SO many uses!) One great thing about having a wood cabin, you can do things like that. I have a large hook on the ground-end of the rope. We've gone thru several ropes since back when DH had a blood clot in lung and I rigged this system. It makes a huge difference unloading groceries and such! The current one has a nylon twisted-strand rope. Not a good option - especially in our fierce sunshine that breaks down plastics. It works but it's unraveling the twists in one spot and it's hard on your hands. Can get nylon/plastic rope burn easily. I used cotton clothesline a couple of times and it's good while it lasts. Stretches a bit but that's ok. Easier on the hands. The top end of the rope....after it goes thru the small pulley (which is tied to one of the high cross beam logs for the porch roof above) is secured to the log that's the porch railing. That way the rope never gets away. DH comes home with grocery sacks or something. Not the pellet bags...over the weight limit! He puts the bag handles on the hook (used one of those very large carabiners they sell at Walmart camping section) ....or 2 bags if they're light enough for me to lift with the pulley. It's a small pulley and doesn't give me too much advantage of leverage but....it's certainly better than grabbing the rope directly and doing hand-over-hand method. I'm describing this cuz it's some of the ways I've adapted to being weaker than I normally should have been. If it's hard times, Energy Conservation doesn't just mean conserving things like electricity, etc. Disability IS hard times and one thing you must save is personal energy. Any way you can think of.... And yes.....we were much younger when we began living here. The steeep hills and stairs and ....lots of reasons ....it's not ideal for older, tired folks. But....the property is grande. The neighbors are not very close but we know them. The scenery is great. And....it would take me as long (or longer) than it's taken Jeepers, to move out of here. But one day.... Who knows. Just taking it a day at a time....knowing this place is ideal for many situations but not for all situations. MtRider ..... maybe I can get to sleep earlier tonite?

Right? for Little Sister and her pesky DGS. The young man has to learn to help himself so as not to be a royal pain for those around him. But it does sound like he's making some progress. Tho baby steps at his age is frustrating. Hang in there. As for a ramp for our stairs........ can't. We have 15 steps ....steeply rising up to the second floor level of the front side of the cabin. Underneath is the basement. It's built into the steep hillside so that the back door opens to ground level. That would be great but trying to make a ramp to that level would be a nightmare - due to the terrain. And the rainwater flooding control ditches. It's good for a quick fire escape since it leads out into the dog's big fenced yard. {formerly a small dog yard and my dwarf goats yard} But the upper hillside goes up nearly verticle only a couple yards beyond the back door. I keep saying that one cannot go more than a hundred feet in any direction from the house without encountering a VERY STEEP up hill or down hill. MtRider

Wow...pretty cupcakes, Martian! Happy Bday, Dee! MtRider

Stayed up late ...catching up on this thread. Oye! y'all have had challenges to overcome at the beginning of 2024! Seems to be straightening out tho. My update is mostly in Blue Couch. We've had the annoying 1-3" of snow...repeatedly. We had enough to warrant paying the snowplow guy and then these bits and dribbles make the driveway so slick. But who can pay for plowing 2" ???? Got more coming in this week. Plus I wasn't here when the melt-water began to form an ice flow from around the corner of the garage....right where the people door is located. Every year I build a mini dam to keep the water -> ice -->water --> ice from creeping too far. It melts during the sunny days and flows down the hill. Some is coming off the ever-growing icicles that hang off the roof on that side of the house. Where they are too high for me to knock down, they get 5-6' long. We had to build a cover over the propane connection into the house so when (not if) a monster one finally let loose of the roof, it wouldn't damage the gas line. CRASH!! Mountain living! So this winter, I'm playing catch-up cuz winter arrived when I was in VA. DH doesn't even understand these little bits that I do...but appreciates the effects. He and I had to bring up heavy bags of wood stove pellets today. The ones from last year came up the stairs to the porch. He carries over his shoulder (hurts his back tho) and I use the small 2-wheel luggage dolly....lugging up one step at a time. This job is getting to be almost more than either of us can do. Got the new bags onto the pallet under the porch with the tarp covering them. Got the bag of cat litter into the back of the car. Wood pellets can add weight for the back of the vehicle but cat litter can also be used for traction on a slick spot. The wood pellets just disintegrate to mushy sawdust. So...that's done. Got a load of clothes down to the washer/dryer in the midst of going up and down the stairs. That was about it for both of us! ...Except evening feeding for birds and I walked the dog a ways. Our temperature dropped this evening... MtRider .....late! So late again!

I've felt relatively mild earthquakes in Iowa, Hawai'i, Colorado, and ....oddly, Georgia. Remember that one Miki?...Darlene? That one felt like a big SHOVE! Since when I walk I sometimes get off balance so that it feels like a mild earthquake feels..... MtRider

I heard - no tsunami warnings tho.

Tests went fine. Details in Blue Couch. TIRED! Glad that's done cuz it's a long trip "to town" from our house. Picked up pizza for supper. MtRider early.....TIRED!

I like the cat, Midnight! This is my yearly contribution to the New Year. MtRider

Definitely better functioning today. Spent quite a while on the phone with the friend who covered my absence on our church Prayer Requests. She was busy! Then when I sent one out last week....no one got it! So she on her computer and me on mine....finally figured out what happened. There was an additional choice between two options...hadn't been there before. I just clicked the top one. That wasn't the right choice. So...now we know. I'm able to talk to my mom every night again. I do it a bit earlier now. Have to time it around eating supper. Or cooking supper. I did go down to walk dog on the road. Chilly day with clouds instead of yesterday's sunshine. Happy New Year everyone. MtRider

for all of you who are sick. Does not sound fun! I DID get a lovely horse ride today. When I woke, I used 2 canes to walk. Flexeril did help my sleep but oye, the leg muscles just quivering!!! I have well developed leg muscles from activities all my life. Then - they just up and quit on me! Hmph!! It gets better as I sit....walk a bit....sit...etc. I could walk from car to mounting ramp at the ranch. Lovely day with sunshine....but dressed for the cold while we're in the wooded areas. I had layers and I was comfortable. Then we went to eat at a place we'd been to 1K times...but during C, the family sold and this is now new management. Kept most of it the same but this is BBQ. HUGE portions! I was so tired, I barely ate. I ate more sometime after we got home. For the quantity of 2 big meals, price is okay. Couldn't believe the size of DH's 'chicken-fried steak'. Walking much more smoothly now. MtRider

Praying for you all that are sick. So far, DH and I are fine. Not that we mix with many people. I had a busy day yesterday but still managed to drive old truck into the village to fill with gas. I rarely do that so I keep forgetting how to use the charge card. Lady patiently helped me. Drove back...changing from 4-wheel to 2-wheel and back again for our driveway. Old vehicle and you have to get out and manually lock the wheel hubs. Took care of the ducks/goose before I drove up to the house. Poor dog did not get a road walk but she has a sizable fenced yard. Had a lot of spasms....they've been increasing...last nite while sleeping -OW! Wake up to get off of one fiery hip and switch to the other side. Stretching it out helps relieve the spasms. I have been able to get back to sleep after easing the pain. Not sure how many times I switch sides. This morning I could barely walk- even with the quad cane. Eventually I could move around and I began taking loads of laundry down stairs to garage/basement. Pushing clothes thru washer and dryer....hauling clothes up to put away or hang in bathroom to dry. Thigh muscles quivering with fatigue or malfunction or whatever. Then in a while, I'd go down the stairs to laundry again. We somehow got way behind and had 3 big loads and a blanket DH did yesterday. I began last nite with a load in washer. Whew! I got the last load upstairs / put away by the time DH got back from his work. Sunny day tho and up from nearly 0* to 45* in the sun. I did take time out to talk to a friend on the phone. We had leftovers tonite to use them up so that was easy. I called mom early - 7pm her time. ........ Then she called me at 9 or 10 her time.....forgetting that we'd already talked until I reminded her that she (the phone) rode in my pocket while I carried the laundry basket down/up the stairs. Then she remembered. She says it's loud noise when I stick the phone in my pocket. She was able to tell me what they had to eat today.....don't know if it was accurate but.... Tonite ...very soon...I'm going to bed. I've already taken Flexeril - anti muscle spasm pill. Tomorrow afternoon....temperature 40* hopefully and sunny.....I get to RIDE! The wrangler is just going to take me out cuz they know I NEED the ride. Hopefully I can get 2 rides in quickly. Last ride I had was in VA.....more than 4 wks ago. Doesn't seem that long but this happens in the winter: off season. You all be careful with being sick and all! Treat yourselves as you would treat your loved ones!!!! MtRider

The alarm went off at 7 something cuz S - snowplow guy was coming at 9:30am to plow our driveway. It's been a slick mess and a guy delivering stuff slid to the down hill side (safer) and nearly got stuck. I went down (yesterday) and coached him to go backwards down - you'll never crest this hill from where you're at. {ask me how I know!!} He did get down safely. My (formerly my dad's) '85 Ford truck has been sitting idle for months. I meant to run it before I left for VA but didn't get around to it. DH said he'd try...and didn't. While gone, they got a foot+ of snow and when S plowed, the truck was in the way. So it wasn't a good plowing job. Recently we've gotten bits and pieces of snow and then 5" all at once. So...Old Red had to get shoveled out...cleaned off enough to get inside. Didn't start so we're opening hood; standing on a 3-step ladder....take the lid off the air filter to spray ether into the carburetor. But couldn't find the ether...wasn't in the cab and Could Not Get Into the back under the topper. The latch would not move...iced. But I tried the key again and it started!! It was definitely God cuz it never starts like that --- and it was COLD & MISERABLE at that hour! I was having trouble sucking in all that cold air. I did have to get out and turn the mechanisms on the front wheel hubs...to put it in 4 wheel drive....as I started to slide where the other guy did yesterday. That's where everyone slides. By then I thot I was having an immediate case of bronchitis. Could barely breathe. Slowly...it got better. Drove down and shoved Old Red out of S's way and rode up with DH who had taken care of the birds and dog who'd had her run-and-fun and got into the car too. When S came, I went out to pay him and advise of the problem areas. Then I moved our car down to the road. I was still wearing all my outdoor gear and the car heater felt good while I waited on the road. After he left, I dumped pellet stove ash (we save in a metal bucket) in strips on the upper part of the driveway so that the sun will focus on melting that. If it gets down to brown dirt, the melting will spread. And.....thank You, God...the sun has come out! I also had a shot at a horse ride today but they are going tomorrow and I can't. Need ride! I could barely climb the stairs after taking the car out of the way. Digging out Old Red really took everything I had. I even took a nap. Left Old Red down in barnyard to melt off more snow...or I have to get a ladder and shove it off. Yet another use of solar power! Not much lovin' such an exciting life at this age. MtRider earlier tho!

If you're still on the topic of taking a huge number of pills initially and then gradually wind down....that's what I was talking about. Can't tell if you're kidding....you know the term 'sucker punch' is hitting some guy before the fight begins, right? {or is that a regional phrase}. Which would be cheating but in the case of the war on germs/illness....go ahead and hit 'em hard. Knock them out of your body. MtRider

Just saw this.....I play it every day on Epoc page. MtRider gotta keep the brain working!

Heading for bed. Snowplow guy coming in morning. My old truck hasn't been started for ...months! It may need some spray in the carburetor before it will start. Old Ford Trucks.....they need to be "warmed up" even in August! Sheesh. AND poor thing is covered with snow. I wasn't here for the first big snow and now we've had more! I'm not even tall enough to scrape off the topper. Note to self: grab ladder before attempting this. We have to move both vehicles out of the way so plow guy can do a good job up here. While I was gone....he left all sorts of piles in wrong places. Too risky to walk on the driveway with packed snow like that. But it's hard for him to see the terrain covered with a foot+ of snow. He's familiar with our driveway for the past years. [he saved DH's life cuz he told us about getting the cure for the C...when it turned bad quickly] So with coaching (begging.. lol) I hope he can get an angle to scrape better this time. WINTER IN THE ROCKIES AND I might have a ride tomorrow...horse ride. It's been a month without and the tremor in my leg muscles is getting worse. I am still walking dog each evening b/4 dusk. Y'all take good care! MtRider

I think the docs might be wanting to hit the 'whatever' HARD .......a medicinal "sucker punch"?? MtRider ....just a theory, mind you. Look up on WebMD???