Mt_Rider

Our gas was down to $3.40 and now less than a week, $3.60. The smaller town is cheaper - for now. MtRider ....cute, Jeepers! Take an idea and RUN with it.

AED = Automated External Defibrillator I just learned how to use one of these in a recent certification for First Aid. Didn't have them when I last took a class for my employment...ages ago. https://babylonbee.com/news/more-grocery-stores-installing-defibrillators-at-checkout-for-when-you-see-your-total MtRider

Hold strong, Little Sister. He needs someone who is still speaking to him...but speaking truth in love. Tough love. Things he should have learned before he was 10 yrs old. Video game babysitters - not good. Too bad about that heritage Bible. I did not sleep last nite, despite taking 1/2 Unisom.......and another 1/2 at about 3am. I just could not get sleepy. All this about my mom, I think. So I made oatmeal for DH and I. After he got ready and left for work, I went to bed at 9am. Slept til 3pm. Felt ok. Did some things and the evening chores of walking dog and shutting ducks/goose into their house for the night. Our pond that did a QUICK FREEZE on the night it got down to minus 9*, is melting off again. I think the birds will be able to swim around tomorrow....which will further break up the skin of ice. ....then....depends on the temperatures. We usually don't get all the way into Nov. Tomorrow afternoon, I have a horse ride. Missed last week cuz weather was rotten cold and snow and they canceled everything. Neeeed this ride. R leg is not really cooperating so my dog walks are awkward. Not going too far. Mom was fine tonite and got very sleepy early. Yeah, the 'whatever' wore her out. I keep giving her ideas to eat...and she's interested but then forgets. Chocolate Ensure is too strong and ...thick. Then add milk or even vanilla ice cream and have a malt. She's just worn out with fixing food all her life. But is pretty picky if others cook. Not meaning to be so picky but ....she's mostly eaten her own cooking for decades. And she's forgetting the extras that make a difference: put Parmesan cheese on spaghetti if it's tasteless. Oh...I could have done that. None of those surrounding her right now, KNOWS her like I do. MtRider ....begin the night time stuff .... 'Nite y'all'

As for my mom...... Thank you all for praying! Yes, she came home today. After only a few hours at the hospital, I talked to her last nite and she sounded pretty normal. So far, nothing has shown on tests to account for her sleeping mostly, thru 48 hrs. Care giver P is going to be there 6 days a week for a couple hours. (she has another client) That will be mostly to make sure Mom has something she'll want to eat. Not fixing herself. I think that's key cuz she's dropped weight. Had to buy new clothes- twice. We'll see how things go. She's been fine since yesterday at the hospital. Once I finally got the right phone number for her room. Talked to her in afternoon and again in the evening. And this morning before she went home. And at our usual time this evening. ..............we'll see. P is going to take Mom's grocery list to the store before she comes tomorrow morning. Hopefully Mom will remember that not eating can = hospital! Simple equation....but there may be more than that underlying. Too low on calories and nutrient never helped tho. MtRider New bedtime.....12:30am. Which is 10 min from now...tho I'm In bed with laptop. Should use my blue-blocker glasses, right?

Wow....everyone is busy and having events. Many are not good news but hopefully MrMiki's news will be good - done and over! (((Miki)))) Annarchy has GREAT news!! Whooooo! Think he's got one foot in the grave and ....it's the MEDS! I think I'm going to choose like my MO friend. She's a retired RN and is getting off most of her pharm meds (carefully) and going herbal. She's older like us and has been out foraging in her MO lush area for a couple years now. She's mostly making tinctures and some salves. I just mailed her a bunch of yarrow that doesn't grow where she is.....but it's all over here in high country. Finally sat down and stripped the leaves and blossom ends off the stems. She doesn't need the stems. Ziplock bags.....took to P.O. to get a mailer envelope. Due to CO's reputation for a certain type of "herb"..... I was trying to stick the clear bags into the mailer before the P.O. guy saw them. But he had to come out to help me find the right ones and glanced in the open box to check the volume/size. So I chatted with him as he stamped and such, about my friend who's and herbalist and make tinctures from plants. They don't have YARROW in the low country (MO was on the address) and our place has tons of it! Oye! But in return she's sending me stuff from her area that I can tincture. That sounds like the easiest type of herbal medicine to make. Takes a while. Strength can be variable, I'd imagine. But what ARE we to do if the pharmacies close up {no product from China/India} I've studies herbal off and on since I was a kid. Used to ask my great aunts (they were GREAT aunts ) about life when they were kids. I've always known willow bark sort of = aspirin but not as strong/upsetting. I only have 3 meds anyway and the sinus ones aren't really helping. Anyway, we still need surgeons and specialists and ..... for Jeeper's ears!!! And Ambergris. And LittleSister's BP issue. Good to be home, Necie but after being way south, north has changed seasons. We're still easing into winter but it got down to MINUS 9* (thot it was -6* but DH says no). The ducks and goose are very unhappy cuz that one severe drop froze their pond. But we've warmed up to 70's daytime. So maybe one end might open up. These birds don't need the east end to get out of the pond. They use the sides...so maybe we'll be able to let them out for a while yet. Healthier/happier. Still below 32* each nite tho. MtRider's commentary on life....

Wow.....what a stretch of rotten health issues! you'll be past that now. MtRider

So sorry for your dh's fall, Miki! Yeah, it's only a screw or two. My mom's was the second time - one screw. When the doctor called in 15 min...Bro panicked. Thot it had to be bad news. Then I panicked when Bro called me ..for the same reason. The first hip took a long time but was a replacement for the ball that broke from the leg bone. Hope MrMiki has only the simple one. Rehab for a total hip is not fun. I lived with my folks while she rehab-ed. Speaking of Mom.....she's been in the hospital since last nite in the ER. She's has these 'spells' where she sleeps thru 48 hrs or more. Doesn't really eat. Assume she gets up for bathroom... She didn't answer my usual evening call on Monday. On Tues, her caretaker called Bro yesterday and said she was still in bed; couldn't get her to eat. So he and niece came over and tried to feed her. She ate a bit. Wasn't real coherent. Just said she's too tired to get up. I talked with her over the phone. Got her a bit more alert. Then told her to see if she could get to the bathroom...just thru a nearby door from her bed. Even with their help, she could not. Not even to a bedside commode. So I told Bro....no choice. Have to get her to ER. By ambulance cuz can't get her in their vehicles. She's actually done this hibernation before a couple times. But you have to first rule out anything physical. By today, I've talked to her x2. Both times very clear and on point. Bro was getting ready for a tranfer to assisted living and now..... But he's changing the home health aide to come 6 days a week instead of 4. She slumps down in activity when no one is around. A senior place with folks closer to her age might be helpful but...she likes her own apartment. She's somewhat a loner but can enjoy conversation with friends too. So....that was stressful. Thot for a while I might have to make a quick trip East. I'm barely out of the effects of the last trips I took. But if I need to.... MtRider

Not LITERALLY, Jeepers dear! Or maybe that would clarify the situation! Sheeesh, I'm glad someone was with you when you dropped and not alone in your hotel room! And...not so funny.... "my right ear still blocked and my left ear with what looks like a rather large perforated eardrum." We knew it. What you had done to you was NOT NORMAL! That woman needs to lose her job!! Send her office those pics and the conclusion. Oye....I hate incompetence especially in the medical field! MtRider (((Jeepers)))

Oye....weather has been the topic here. Saturday it was rain/snow/graupel. Supposed to get real cold but didn't...20*. Woke up to 5" of snow Sunday. Continued to snow off and on. DH says he saw MINUS 6* during the night. Ack....a week or so ago, we broke high temp records for that day. No...wasn't that hot but just for late October weather - it was marvelous! Halloween weather has traditionally been awful. All the little ghosts and goblins are big and round with thick coats under their costumes. We're at 10* at midnight here now. I anticipated the need for the pellet stove....so all the sorting STUFF I'd shoved all around it all summer - had to move. Stupid new furnace cannot heat the place enough. So ...at least I have another area clear and normal again. Course the ducks and goose are not happy that last nite froze their pond. We've been so warm they've had extra time this year. They'll spend the rest of the winter staring at the frozen pond from their pen. Springtime, birds. Wait till Spring! I finally finished stripping the leaves and flower parts off the yarrow I harvested/dried for my MO friend for tinctures. She's been able to get herself off most pharm meds and is doing better. She's sending me some tinctures already made. Yanno? I carried this HUGE and HEAVY 'bouquet' of those plants up this hill. After drying and remove stems, the rest fit into two almost filled quart Ziplocks. Hmph! Cheap to send...weighs almost nothing. BUT....that project is finally out of the way. Cuz they were hanging upside down along the fireplace - pellet stove. So they had to go. Missed my ride this weekend due to nasty Sat. weather. Stables closed down for the weekend. But I'm doing ok. Still fatigue stuff. Miki....mom hadn't been eating well. Too much of the same stuff and she doesn't want to light her gas oven. Meals on Wheels are getting old. Bro and DH and I talked about getting her interested in food. So her caretaker (comes 4 days a week for varied hours) is cooking some things with her. And they do go out to eat. Mom was enthused about variation in meals. She gets bored on the days P doesn't come. My folks used to go somewhere every day but Sunday. Bro and Niece are both working and have upkeep on the farm and Bro's boat. They had NO idea what they were getting into...Mom with no transportation except P. And she hasn't joined a church...no transportation. She hasn't really gotten to know anyone much. She's a bit shy to just go knock on a door to visit her near neighbors. I call every night...... ...tonite she didn't answer. We usually talk from around 9:30 - 11:30pm her time. That's right during cooking/eating supper my time but I work around it. I emailed Bro...he said she'd been asleep in chair when he talked to her earlier so she probably went to bed. We are wondering.... if she needs more time with her caretaker..... Expensive but so is a care home...which she'd hate. End of life stuff is hard!!!! MtRider .... ...yeah, I'm changing my bedtime to 12:30am. Have been missing the 11:30pm

Glad to see you back, Necie! Have a wonderful trip. Wow...everyone around here is getting new babies arriving. Well, not all of us. Very low energy day but I did manage to walk dog 3/10ths of a mile. That's down our driveway and on the road to the next driveway an- d back to the car. DH puts the birds inside for the night and I really wasn't going to walk back UP the driveway. Good thing this week is empty. Don't have to be anywhere. Mom was confused tonite. I woke her up- sleeping in her chair. She kept thinking it was morning and her helper would be coming soon. I traced her back to when P did arrive this morning and cooked her breakfast. We were on track for a while and then she'd veer off again. I do not want to lose her that way either. Going to bed soon. Got up too early this morning with headache but DH adjusted me so maybe that pattern will stop. MtRider

Necie!!! And where have you BEEN??? and I see you brought your annoying little BUG with you! I'm always squishing knats on my screen! Plenty of chocolate around this group! MtRider ...welcome home!

I should .....with all the spare energy I have........dehydrate more frozen veggies. That's easy too. MtRider

Hi everyone. Speaking of non-productive....this has not been my best day for functioning. Didn't even try to walk dog tonite. I did manage to reheat the sweet/sour pork and the rice for supper. Been taking/sending prayer requests too. One of our older members has the 'C'...so we pray that his wife doesn't come down with it. It's getting less and less strong as the virus shifts to softer variants of itself. You're getting there, Jeepers. Quality time with little GS is worth the trip. I hope you find your house is coming right along so you could at least live in it instead of the hotel. You'd have an oven and stove top and .... I had to snicker just a tiny bit about your hammering holes in the wall. How big was the hammer? Might want to get a smaller hammer head so the control is better with small stuff. ...we've got a "patched" place in our bathroom. I had a stick-on hook to hang my hairdryer. Eventually (I might have put a couple more things like hair straightener/curler on the same hook...) it came off, taking a bit of wall with it. The patch needs to be sanded and painted. First I'd have to FIND a sander. Don't think I took home any from Dad's collection. And Jeepers? Your ear incident does not sound good. Please do get it checked soon! I may have to voyage over to the bigger town to get my R ear checked. Maybe the hearing aid is going too far into the ear and the connecting 'cord' needs to be shortened just a smidge? Dunno, but DrDH looked into my ear twice now and the tympanic membrane is red. I feel like scratching my ear like dogs do..... Itch/pain. Just one MORE thing to do, right? Momo...so sorry you feel like you're not progressing. My grief counselor told me many times that everyone grieves in their own ways and on their own timetables. No one else can tell you how to grieve. It also varies but I'm quite sure that spouse is one of the very hardest. LittleSister...You are in such a better place than you were 6 months ago. You've got control of your own house and GS is learning how to behave like a young man. Keep it up. And such a LOT you've done around your house and gardens, etc. Enjoy new Grgrandbaby Isn't that just like husbands? Now I realllly want to have the energy to run down there (with car, not literally RUN) and harvest again. I'll have to bring them inside or the nocturnal thieves on my porch will steal them again. Tincture sounds easy to make with few rules to be careful of. MtRider .....

Oye...takes me forever to catch up again. This week...... ....I don't think there's anything on the calendar for me...except hopefully a ride Sat. I've been in a much heavier schedule than I'm used to. Which means events leaving house 3-4x per wk. Doesn't sound much for all of you go-getters! Fall Fatigue has not made it easier. Once I get towards December .... or even November, it (whatever Fall Fatigue is...) goes away as uneventfully as it comes. MS folks get that drained out feeling in the Fall.....and many get it in the Spring too. Something in the change of seasons is stressing us out. (altho I'm not an "us" with MS anymore. Bit hard to remember that....but it must be somewhat similar.) Had a good ride on Sat. Last week I FROZE but this week we were breaking heat records for that day. I was wearing a tank top and wishing for shorts instead of jeans. So goes the mountain weather! Our lovely golden aspens are already bare here. Just a bit lower in altitude, it still shines with them tho. The days are really pleasant but I'd like some rain......wildfire insurance. You all are so ambitious. I'm trying to get the harvested/dried yarrow stripped from the stems and sent to my MO friend. I was planning to harvest more mullein on my way back from Bible study on Wed...cuz the porch varmints STOLE my last harvest. Well THAT didn't happen. One of the ladies had to drive me, in my car, home. Since her husband had been at church too, he followed us and was able to get her home from there. I somehow sat in the regular chairs around the big table during the study [hour and half] instead of sitting in my wheelchair as I usually do. I automatically rock back and forth and keep my legs moving {fidgeting} so that when I go to stand, my legs are still working. This time....uh oh! Muscles esp, in R leg locked in position. I got me and stuff out to my car by transferring over to the wheelchair. But I usually walk behind it and have my HEAVY (enough for TEOTWAWKI in there!) purse and bag with Bible/book etc. on the wheelchair seat. So as I was trembling and not steady, the ladies immediately helped me put wheelchair in rear and asked if I was going to be able to drive. I "fell" into the seat and said: I'll know in a minute. Tried to get the "frozen" stiff R leg to work the gas/brake. "Uh uh. This isn't going to work". So I hoisted myself backwards over the console and into the other front seat. Then pulled my awkward leg over and got situated. I try to be as independent as possible but driving with very tight thigh muscles on driving leg....nope. It eventually let loose. But P and I had a good time talking on my way home. Her dh was the one who taught the 1st Aid/CPR that I took. There are so many attending now that I don't know anymore. So that's been my exciting week. Glad to read that everyone's doing well. for Annarchy going home - or has arrived. For Jeepers coming back home now or soon. For Miki's dh. For Little Sister's shoulder....take care of it! And for GS to continue his good behavior. Becca Anne....I love getting organized. I'm envious. I did get a few things sorted this week. No where to put what I sorted tho... MtRider ...off to bed

Peak Illumination, Astronomy, and Moon Illusion The best time for viewing this year’s Hunter's Moon will be during peak illumination on Saturday, Oct. 28. Yet the nights on either side—on Oct. 27 and 29—will look pretty good, too, as the moon won't have moved much. The full moon reaches its zenith at 4:24 p.m. EDT when it will be below the horizon viewed from North America. So you’ll have to wait until sunset for it to rise. Full moons only occur when the sun and moon are directly on opposite sides of the Earth, which is why when one rises the other is always setting. Notably, this year's Hunter's Moon will have a planetary companion. Our solar system’s largest planet, Jupiter, will appear shining brightly right under it. Their apparent proximity is a mere illusion, however; Jupiter is actually 1500 times farther away than our moon. https://www.theepochtimes.com/bright/full-hunters-moon-set-to-grace-the-autumn-night-sky-in-october-2023-all-you-need-to-know-5513228?utm_source=Bright&src_src=Bright&utm_campaign=bright-2023-10-22&src_cmp=bright-2023-10-22&utm_medium=email&cta_utm_source=Bright&est=AqyK%2Bhd0izFY6UFhok41Rbe3TLl3SZC1cRFpmQFmcNFdV6Lp2btDSrJ92xNKPLJGaA%3D%3D Should be a great illuminating effect if your areas have clear skies. MtRider

I think I'm late again....... Happy Birthday Pixie MtRider

Wow, Kappy! How is your back and other health concerns doing? C. Mary and her hens. I agree about the egg storage. We've used waterglass for years in our cool basement with good results. We did try store-bought cuz.....C0vid and just then we were between flocks. We use a lot too. Well, waterglass worked for a month with the store bought....maybe. Not going to work for us. So DH ordered some baby birds again. Couple years ago. We have 4 ducks and 1 goose. I hope it's the female. Never did figure out between those two. But something nailed the other goose recently. Had a long, fun day Friday and rode Sat. but today. Fall Fatigue is stealing the energy advantage that the new med has given me. Just handwashing a few small items of clothing had my hands shaking so bad I could barely get the fork in my mouth. { grumble...wear goggles before I put my eye out!} It's SO hard to get anything done in the fall due to that. And so much to get ready for our winters!!! Well, DH was finally able to get straw bales for the duckhouse. I had started to cut some of the very tall (we had rain and no horses ) grass in the pasture for them. A/C unit is out of the window and back in the box in basement. I washed up a bunch of eggs for us to use from the fridge upstairs. Like Kappy said: only put unwashed 'clean' FRESH ones in the waterglass and we've got 2 buckets full already. Meanwhile DH was trying to find things in the Chaos Cammo. Distressed over the M.E. situation...... A lot is not being told, of course. And now our Prez is there.....we don't need something to happen to him there .....whether we vote for him or not. That would be catastrophic! Such sorrow over there for all human beings. {to clarify, I believe some are no longer fully human .....in personally doing what was done to babies, etc.} MtRider

Thanks, Annarchy!

Jeepers....I'm siding with Mother and Becca Anne. My ears are sensitive and I'd have thrown that device across the room! DH has the metal cup and syringe thing. Warm water! But I don't usually have much build up. I still cringe when he does it. Don't like things in my ears and now I have hearing aids in both. Took one out today cuz it felt a bit sore by afternoon. But that much pain...something is not right. So sorry you went thru that. Once you get to Indy, you've gotta find some GOOD medical people! Kind and friendly AND COMPETENT. They are a gold mine if you can keep them. Have a safe trip and we'll see ya later. Annarchy...oye! The whole house both days? Better give yourself a break now.....before you're so tired you break something. Nice that it's done tho, huh? LittleSister...enjoy that baby!!! Euphrasyne...I'm imagining a cute teeny-tiny ghost! Miki....good thing there are folks like you that do grab that after-party trash before it blows all over everywhere. I got to go out to have lunch with a friend yesterday. A long [beautiful warm sunny ] day cuz I rode into town early with DH who meets his client at Sr. Bingo. He helps her with her cards. Belatedly realized that DH and I definitely qualify for SENIOR Bingo....so I played ONE card. Less stress!! Then DH dropped me at our meeting-friend location and he went off to client's house. Client gets a Sr ride to Bingo and back. My friend lives quite far from here but we got to know each other before we moved here. We had a great girl talk day. Then she dropped me off where the seniors get rides and she went one way home and I went the other. Glad for those senior rides....not just for medical appt tho that is priority. Then I was on the horse today. 20* this morning at my house. By our 11am ride, it was warmed up a bit but my toes froze in the boots. Was pretty chilled when I got back in car to go home. Wrapped my toes in my down vest. But we'll have nicer days before the snow gets deep. MtRider ...hot cocoa!

Always glad when you've got time for MrsS, Dogmom! MtRider .....I saved you and

Well I was on a horse today and.....we didn't notice ANY sign of solar eclipse. I actually forgot all about it..... {I want my brain back!} MtRider ....who froze today on the horse. Moon blocking our great CO solar rays!

https://science.nasa.gov/eclipses/future-eclipses/eclipse-2023/where-when This site tells it's track across the western U.S. particularly.....and when you'll need to block your eyes. Ambergris..it will hit your area too. ....solar glasses only. Sunglasses are not strong enough to look at it. MtRider

Wow....I missed that too. That's HUGE! A most EXCELLENT prep!!! I can relate to the sleep thing, Little Sister. Here I am at 1:30am....still catching up with MrsS. I didn't realize I'm behind again. Where are the days going? So I'm saying a quick and ....almost. Still have to catch up with Ambergris in Ecuador... MtRider ...soon tho

MtRider ...amid all the turmoil, new life goes on..... for tiny Josie and her family

to Great Granddaughter! MtRider