themartianchick

32 minutes ago, Littlesister said:

 

So today, will mop kitchen floor since I didn't get that part done yesterday, wash a load of towels, and work on the bedroom.  What I really wanted to do is get back to church, but I am limited with knee. That is a long drive, and the doctor said no driving and stay off that leg. I don't drive far as it hurts that knee being the right one. And I still have work around here to do. I'm very slow at getting it done but it's going to get done. 

Slow and steady wins the race, Littlesister!

Good morning!

It is nice to see that so many of you have been busy and productive. Here on Mars, things came to a screeching standstill when a major catastrophe hit! My husband has a cold.

Admittedly, he doesn't get sick often and the last illness was 2 1/2 years ago when he got COVID. This time, he says that it isn't as bad as COVID was, but he is coughing and congested. I had always hoped that his reaction to illness would improve with age. Instead, it is kind of like having a sick 8-year-old. (You can only imagine the whining.) I have been tucking him into his recliner, massaging his back, and bringing him things to eat and drink since Thursday evening. Fortunately for him, he is generally the polar opposite when he is healthy. I guess that I can cut him a little slack!

Today, I am going out to Dad's house to straighten up and wait for a nurse to show up. They want to use a recording pulse oximeter on him to check his oxygen levels when he sleeps. His hearing is pretty bad, so I want to make sure that he understands everything.

I love seeing all of the photos that have been posted of pretty spring flowers. The flowers seem to be a bit slow here in NY, but the trees are blooming a ton of pollen into the air and stirring up respiratory issues in people who don't usually have those problems. My double tulips are just starting to peek out and my mini daffodils & grape hyacinths have managed to survive 6 years of incredibly neglectful gardening. This year, I am going to focus on the existing perennial flower & food beds and only plant annual foods that I cannot source locally at the farmer's market. There will definitely be herbs, though. I love basil and treat it like a vegetable, not a seasoning. In the past, I grew a purple or a Chen variety. I'm not sure which one I will select this year. Today's morning activities will include sorting through my seeds to select the varieties. 

Have a great day, everyone!

The tax man cometh... I just want him to go-eth!

We have a similar situation with capital gains so I feel your pain, Jeepers.

I got my bloodwork done today. I didn't feel too productive. I never realized how much time is spent just getting ready to go out in public in the cold. Vanity is definitely my Achilles heel! Showering, lotioning, hairstyling, putting on clothes, applying makeup, selecting earrings & shoes, putting on perfume, etc... The blood draw took 5 minutes. I spent the remainder of the day pondering my sanity. I went through the same ritual that I would have gone through to go to work...for 5 stinking minutes! Afterward, I couldn't even come up with someplace else to go to make the day less of a waste. I should have just worn pajamas and a winter hat to the doctor's office. 

I've been busy for the past few days, but I wanted to stop by to say, "Hi!"

Tomorrow, I have to get blood drawn and plan to spend some time rounding up items to sell on eBay and Poshmark. I am determined to downsize my closet and have decided that it is ridiculous to hold onto so many clothes that will never fit again. (Somewhere in my closet is a pair of size 2 jeans from the mid-1980s. I had to skip breakfast and lay on the floor to s-q-e-e-z-e into them in high school. )  I have some Priority Mail shipping boxes and bags arriving in the next few days to get ready for that. We've seen some rain today from the big storm, but no snow...yet! We are expecting some, so I plan to just stay at home and focus on my to-do list.

Mt_Rider - That noise sounds really scary! The sheer fact that it is disrupting your life is a sign that it could also send your blood pressure through the roof. Anything that interferes with your sleep and/or causes pain can also push your blood pressure up. Do you have a blood pressure cuff? I use an inexpensive wrist one that I purchased from Amazon. I hope that you will be feeling better soon!

10 hours ago, Littlesister said:

 

 

I got my taxes done but I am paying this year again but a lot more. Got all that taken care of. I didn't realize SS still did not take out taxes as well as my retirement that I had to take out extra money on. So, all that is now taken care of. Next year should be much better. I don't have to take extra money out for at least a couple of years and this time I will be all over my financial planner if he doesn't do what I ask. this time. He has been giving me bad advice lately and I really need to find a new one or just go over his head and call the main office. I pay him to do a job and I expect him to do it. 

 

 

 

Thank you for posting this, Littlesister. I need to take care of this for hubby. When we file next year, our circumstances will have changed and we will owe if SS doesn't withhold taxes.

We are getting some snow and wind in NY today. I have been racking up the hours for one client and creating materials for others.  I haven't felt this good in years. I've been sleeping in most days and staying up pretty late. Being able to sleep on a schedule that aligns with my Seasonal Affective Disorder has made me more productive...and creative.

I did manage to do some cleaning and straightening over the past few days and downsized my shoe collection a bit.  I need to do the same with the clothes in my closet. I have far too many items, including items that no longer fit. It is so difficult to get rid of "aspirational weight-loss clothing." I have also boxed up a lot of my book collection. I own a lot of books, but I'm only attached to certain ones. We intend to buy another house, and I want them packed up and ready to go. I've already read them all, but I have to have books in any house that I live in!

We have begun planning our next trip to Florida, so I have been packing items that need to be relocated there.

Tomorrow will be colder and I have to get Dad to a doctor appointment and maybe do a bit of grocery shopping. We have plenty of food and nothing that I want to cook.

Good morning, everyone!

Don't you just hate it when you know that you have something, but can't find it? I went through that yesterday. Our oldest daughter called to ask if I had some discarded materials that she could use to create a greenhouse effect for some flowerpots. I remembered that I had been gifted one of those small wire frame seed starter-type greenhouses and never used it. I was positive that I knew exactly where it was stored...and just couldn't find it.

The good news is that I managed to find one of those small seed starter trays with a lid and gave her that for the time being. The other good news is that kickstarted the cleaning of my craft room and the bedroom closet... and under my desk, too! This is the first time in years that I have had enough free time to even attempt to do this. The only bad news is that I'm not finished with any of the three areas that I mentioned and I still haven't found the mini greenhouse.

Today, I will be eating the final container of last week's soup and a few other fridge leftovers. I have already gotten in a long walk and hope to finish my closet and desk today. I need to find a better storage option for my shoe herd, though. The craft room is going to take a long-term investment of time. In addition to storing crafting supplies for crafts that I no longer make, it also houses holiday decorations and any other crap that I can push in there when I need to "clean-up" quickly because company is coming. I'm not really ready to face that right now.

Our local mall was giving away free glasses to view the upcoming solar eclipse, so I went to collect them. We already have some but plan to give these ones to family members to keep them safe. I had a couple of virtual meetings today, but it has been pretty laid-back. I spent an hour looking for stone floor tile to install on the kitchen counter in the condo. I want the look of stone but refuse to pay thousands for a slab. I need to order some samples so that I can see what it really looks like. I need to take care of dad's taxes, but that will probably be pushed off until tomorrow.

I am glad that the storm hasn't been as bad for Mt. Rider. We are only expected to get rain from the same system. We live in a major snowbelt that usually gets dumped on. This year, we haven't had much worth shoveling and are way behind the averages. Here is a link to an annual contest between NY cities:

https://goldensnowball.com/

Feel better, Littlesister! There is no need to try to push through an illness. You've been working hard enough and deserve to take some time to support your health.

4 hours ago, Jeepers said:

 

 

Speaking of...Dollar Tree is closing nearly 1000 Family Dollar stores. No locations disclosed yet. Rat infected warehouse and violent crime and theft cited. 

 

 

 

Now that Family Dollar and Dollar Tree are owned by the same company, I am not surprised that they are trying to close stores. Family Dollar had a habit of opening new stores within easy walking distance of each other. It really over-saturated the market. In my city, we have 4 on the same street and on the same side of town. The street is also serviced by a major bus route, which makes it even more ridiculous from an economic development point of view.

Hubby did manage to fix the auger, but it could not manage to move the clog. So, we called Roto Rooter and they jetted the line...twice. It didn't work. In fact, their hose actually burst the second time.  So, they used their auger on the cleanout valve in the basement instead of the floor drain, and that did the trick! The cost was more than we wanted to spend on a repair like that, but it could have been far worse. A neighbor had to have their sewer pipes dug up to address a similar problem. That would have cost thousands of dollars.

I still feel as though I lost the entire day and hope to make up for it tomorrow. At least, I can cook tomorrow.

My sincere condolences, Euphrasyne and Mother... It is always difficult to lose someone that you care about. I know that to also be true when you lose a fur-baby, Miki!

We are busy in our household today. Yesterday morning, hubby discovered that we had a small sewage backup in the basement. He figured that he'd address it after lunch because he had something else to do in the morning. As it turned out, he couldn't fix it and planned to work on it this morning. Today, he can't get the drill to go back on the drum auger and it might not work anyway. He has kept me busy searching for solutions online and I'm just about ready to call a plumber. We actually had to go to one of our vacant rentals (about 2 miles away) to use the bathroom. We have the 5-gal bucket w/ seat and a chemical toilet, but we don't really want to deal with either of those right now. I think that we will need to get the line hydrojetted. Who knows how much that will cost? 

Good morning, everyone!

Today, I am taking my dad to get an x-ray and hoping that is the only thing on his agenda. We took him grocery shopping last week and made a little outing of it by taking him to see our daughter's new house before the demolition/rehab begins. He can be extremely slow in a store and a simple trip to the doctor's office and a store like BJ's or Walmart can take up an entire afternoon. My husband had been managing the majority of his appointments, but now that I am retired I will be doing more.

Aside from that, I plan to get in some weight training and a walk today. The temperature is going up to 58 degrees, so it should be a beautiful day! Hubby will be fixing something on his sister's car. I also need to get our health insurance sorted out. I tried to apply for coverage on the NY Health Exchange on Sunday, but the website had a problem in the middle of the application. I also need to find a Medicare Part B for hubby, as he was using my work insurance to cover that portion of his medical expenses.

No cooking will happen today, as we have leftover chicken soup and rolls for dinner.

Have a great day!

The 'little consulting work' that I mentioned has now consumed about 4 hours of my day and isn't all comprised of billable hours. However, I did pick up 2 new clients (old friend and his girlfriend) so that should pay off down the road. So far, the bread machine has made the dough for rolls, and I made the chicken salad and chopped salad. I even managed to pace through the house while talking to the new client! (That counts as exercise, right?) I do need to take care of that humidifier, though. Once the sun goes down, I lose all energy to get things done.

I am inspired by your diligence, Littlesister! I have some deep cleaning and decluttering that needs to occur in this house, but I keep procrastinating. Maybe I'll start next week... 

You are busy, Necie! My husband still drags his feet when I mention that I can order the exact thingamajig he needs online versus going to six different local stores and hoping that they have the correct obscure part. There has to be a male gene involved in this...

Today, I will make chicken salad, a chopped salad, wheat rolls, and soup. I will also be cleaning out my humidifier. It is designed to give the whole house some extra moisture when the heat is on and addresses some of the menopausal eye dryness that I've been dealing with. You are supposed to only use filtered water in it and I started out using a Brita to provide it. Hubby decided that it was too much work and started filling it with tap water, so it now has some limescale in the bottom. I also plan to filter some more water so that there is always some available to pour in. I also have a little consulting work to get through, too.

Have a great day, everyone!

9 hours ago, Mt_Rider said:

One does not do laundry on rain or snow days tho.  Especially snow since we always must sweep/shovel the stairs before stepping on them.  We don't have an inside access to the built-into-the-hill basement area.  (cuz this cabin is too small!)  Do have dryer with the washer but some things need to be hung!  The dryer would eat them.  So I have all sorts of creativity to hang stuff in the bathroom too for inclement weather at the clothes line.  Like verticle clothes line for light weight stuff like sox/undies. 

 

Well, I'm feeling improved today....chasing away this mild (so far) cold.     No fever.  DH is taking stuff to make sure I don't 'share'.    So far; so good.     I took a nap today.  I felt much better after that.  Working on getting at least IN bed by midnight....tho tonite is:

 

DAY LIGHT SAVINGS TIME SWITCH.  Everyone remember we lose an hour tonite. 

 

{ does that mean it's midnight-thirty already? }    

 

MtRider   

The beauty of the drying porch was that it was fully screened. I could hang clothes out when it rained and I used to put up plastic sheeting during the winter. I couldn't dry clothes out there all winter, but could dry them through December and whenever there was a thaw. The upstairs laundry room also had racks for drying. It doubles as extra pantry space, too. Our basement is a dirty one. The house is an old Victorian so everything is stone and cement. I hate doing laundry there because if you drop something on the floor, it becomes instantly dirty. For that reason, I don't use the drying racks in it. With a little luck, we will be out of this house soon and will rent it out. I want a really clean basement in the next house and I want it remodeled into a rec room and laundry.

Although my last day on the job was February 29th, today felt like the first day of (my second stab at) semi-retirement. We are back in Central NY and I laid out a few goals to work on. The first one involves taking care of my health: proper sleep, exercise, and nutritious meals. To kickstart that goal, I slept a little late and put a chicken in the oven at 10 am. I got a good workout in and fixed a couple of sides to go with it. I sorted through all of the mail that had accumulated during our month in Florida and watched Amazon Prime all afternoon in my pajamas. I did manage to unpack a few items that were in my suitcase but didn't work too hard at it. The good thing is that everything that we brought back is clean, as there is a washer and dryer in our condo.

I can certainly empathize with your laundry situation, Euphrasyne... In NY, I used to have a 2nd floor laundry room and a 2nd floor back porch that I could dry clothes on. During the years that I was caring for my mom, my husband re-located the laundry to the basement against my wishes. To line-dry clothes now, I would have to schlep them from the 2nd floor to the basement for washing and then haul them back to the 2nd floor to hang them to dry. I used to do his laundry...Not anymore!

In Florida, we don't have a drying rack and I have too many clothes that can shrink in a dryer. I had noticed a mildew odor in my closet and decided to wash all of the clothes that had been in there for the past few years. That is when I realized that I had no place to hang them. I ended up putting them all on hangers and hanging them up on the curtain rod for the patio doors, in the coat closet with the doors open, on the shower curtain bar, on the towel racks inside the spare bath, on my exercise bike, etc... I was positive that one of our friends would drop by unannounced and see the house looking like a weird, clothing store.

Violet used to post solid advice about food preservation on Mrs. S. I believe that she passed away a little while back, but her posts should still be searchable. She was a stickler for using all of the proper procedures and equipment, as she used to teach food preservation through her local extension office. 

You'll be missed, Jeepers! Be safe...

Just a thought about chair lifts...

Chair lifts are not the most aesthetically pleasing items to have in a home. When they are no longer required, people often have them removed. You might be able to find one that is secondhand for a lot less than new. My former employer bought one from a church that was closing to merge with another. You might be able to find one by spreading the word in your area. My husband's friend was able to get 2 electric scooters similarly. Despite being a double amputee, his insurance would only cover a manual wheelchair and/or prosthetics.

On 1/22/2024 at 10:53 AM, Momo said:

I have a full basement but I can't get down there anymore.  My old scooter could make it down the slight outdoor incline to the walkout door.  However, the one I have now cannot do it.  Who would think that even the power chair you use can make such a difference? Life is really different when you lose some of your mobility. I never though I would be anything but able bodied.

 

Jeepers I thought I was prepped too.  I even have a nice generator.  Now I can't even reach it, move it or start it. Even if you get prepared, things can change in the blink of an eye. Life is just one thing after another.  How can you prep for every scenario imaginable?

 

We will all just keep doing the best we can.  It is good that we can comisserate.

Being prepared is a fluid thing... Our lives and abilities can change in the blink of an eye! My mom never imagined that she would need mobility assistance. She had always been so active. Watching her try to age in the family home forced us to re-examine our retirement plans and re-evaluate our housing choices. Our place in Florida is an all-electric condo on the first floor. It is close to grocery stores, fast food, pharmacies, a dollar store, medical offices, etc. We have gradually remodeled it and made sure that things are as accessible, as possible. It is an ideal location to age in place under ordinary circumstances and in case of a loss of mobility. But for a real emergency, it is not at all ideal. When the air conditioning goes out, it heats up quickly! We went 24 hours without air conditioning back in May and we were miserable. If the power goes out due to a big storm, we'd be out of luck. No cooking, no cooling, no water...No, thanks! The condo is only good when life is good. At the first sign of trouble, we'd be trying to hightail it back to NY or a hotel. 

I learn so much from all of the experiences that are shared. I hope that we can do more than just commiserate. It feels good when we all brainstorm and come up with solutions for the tougher problems shared here.

2 hours ago, euphrasyne said:

I'm gen X and have raised several gen Z.  We are used to change and tech.  Tech doesn't bother me and I adapt as needed.  I have a lot of apps on my phone and computer and I'm not afraid of them. They are a means to an end.  

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Generation_X its not wrong.  

I am also Gen X and I love technology... I just hate tiny phone screens! I can't clone myself but access to technology makes me more productive.

2 hours ago, Mother said:

I am so grateful I have young(er) people to help me figure out a few of the tech things but even that doesn’t always make it easy. It took me weeks to get brave enough to try to get groceries delivered only to find only one store would come this far out in the country. They all use Door Dash and Instacart just like the store we use, but if the store doesn’t say they deliver then it’s not passed on to the services, according to the Instacart guy who was here last.  The online customer service says “they should”..  

 

The senior bus doesn’t come here and though I have not checked into Uber, I’m guessing it won’t either.  And being wheel chair dependent and needing help I doubt an Uber would furnish that service. Even if it would accommodate my small break-down travel scooter.  The heavy section weighs forty five pounds and it’s pushing it for my DD to load it.  
 

Many stores have handicapped scooters and I appreciate that but they only help if I’m actually IN the store.  Most have online ordering with pick up but I still have to have ‘someone’ pick it up which is not always convenient for my family.  Not that they wouldn’t go out of their way to help us but…….  They do so much for us already.  
 

For me, the apps are not always helpful. And especially not fast food ones.  I really need a girl or guy Friday.  Maybe one called Miss App,  but you guessed it, the ones I’ve contacted don’t want to come this far out!!!  And we only live 12 mile from the city where the stores are located.   In all fairness, it is on a  tree lined dark lonely road where we are the only house, and the lane to the house is 1000’ into the surrounding fields and trees.  One poor city oriented delivery girl came about dark and was petrified because she couldn’t see a house at the address.  She was hysterical and swore she would never deliver outside of town again.    We didn’t tell her that we have a cougar periodically passing through our timber which is on either side of the drive….. (we catch sight of him all the time on our trail cams)   
 

  back to the search for home bound senior and handicapped convenience.  
 

 

Mother, (as Jeepers mentioned), there may be some options available to you. The first thing is to talk to your doctor. He/she may be able to document the need in your medical file and/or that of your spouse. That documentation can open the door to services. Also, if you become hospitalized for 3 (?) or more days, you may be deemed eligible for other supportive services. My mom was able to get at-home physical therapy, occupational therapy and a 2x weekly nurse visit. The occupational therapist was able to order things that made it easier for my mom to function in her apartment and billed those goods to her insurance.

Some insurance will allow you to have a home health aide to assist with personal care or chores. Some states have programs that allow you to pay a friend or relative to assist you. NY is one of those states, but you have to be on Medicaid to apply. When we needed someone to assist my mom, we used the Caredotcom website. You can find local people who are willing to provide whatever service you need (childcare, patient care, house cleaning, driving, etc). They even can do a background check and motor vehicle license check (for a fee) before you hire someone. With the two people that we hired through the website, we knew someone who was acquainted with them. It was nice to not have to feel that we were just crossing our fingers and hoping for the best.

1 hour ago, Jeepers said:

 

 

You need an assistant who will come once a week (more or less) who will take you to run errands and doctor appointments etc. I don't know what that is called though. A shoppers assistant? Does your insurance, Medicare or other senior services provide anything like that? Government assisted programs? You should qualify for something. It seems like other people, have people like that, but I wouldn't know how to go about contacting one. It seems like people know how to get things done and how to take advantage of perks except for me. 

 

I'll need to check into senior bus service when I get moved too. That could be very important to senior living.  

Check with your health insurance company, Jeepers. Some of the Medicare Advantage plans include transportation services. If you are not too rural, you might be able to qualify for some sort of Call-A-Bus service for seniors or people with disabilities. You might need to get some documentation from your doctor to qualify. My mom qualified for the bus, but we never used it.

On 1/17/2024 at 8:43 AM, euphrasyne said:

I hate Walmart, it is by far the most expensive place to shop for groceries in town.  I check the prices, but it is always the most expensive along with Costco and Sam's Club.  Even Harris Teeter or Whole Foods are cheaper around here.  I mostly stick to BJs, Kroger, Food Lion, Aldis, Lidl, The Royal Bazar (Indian Grocery,) or the Asian Market. I spend about one or two hours a week cross referencing prices.

My mind is completely blown by the fact that Whole Foods is cheaper than Walmart in your area! We have to drive an hour and a half to get to Whole Foods when we are staying in our place in NY. When we go to Florida, the Whole Foods is also an hour and a half away. We only shop there when we want to get the buffet or to buy a slice of cake or something. We treat it like it is a restaurant. Even then, the store lives up to its nickname of Whole Paycheck! 

In NY, we mostly shop at Aldi and purchase a few other items at Price Right or Price Chopper. Wegmans used to be my favorite store but the prices have soared. They now rival Whole Paycheck.

In our landlocked area of Florida, we shop at Aldi for the majority of our groceries and buy our paper goods and cleaning supplies at Walmart. Our favorite store is Earth Fare because they sell a lot of fresh seafood, marinated chicken breasts and they sometimes have good deals on steak for my hubby. We also have the local flea market for farm-fresh goods. There is an entire wing for sellers of seafood, eggs, veggies and fruits. 

I am not prepared to jump on this grocery challenge now. However, I have put my husband on notice: I will be retiring in a few weeks and I have already built a grocery budget. This topic has inspired me to build some menus of my own. We have a bad habit of wasting food that was acquired in recent years. This might be a good way of addressing it and ensuring that we beat the goals for our grocery budget.

Thank you for the inspiration!!!

Edited to add: If you use an Amazon Prime Visa card at checkout, you get a discount on your Whole Foods purchase. I don't remember how much we saved. (Probably because we are always so shocked by the initial price on the cash register.) The discount shows up on the statement, I think.