Clarification. Spaghetti did NOT contribute to my migraine on Friday. In fact, I hadn't eaten spaghetti in many, many days. It is just the food I think of when I'm feeling really sick.
Update. I actually did eat spaghetti today! The youth group had a spaghetti dinner fundraiser after church. Yum!
Bonus Update. Still feeling tired from Friday's "adventure." Lew is on vacation this coming week, so I'm planning on some days filled with fun and relaxation. Both are much needed!
Some may think that "the spaghetti test" is when one throws cooked spaghetti against the wall to determine its doneness.
I am here to set the record straight.
This test is really a mental exercise to determine the extent of one's illness. "Do I ever want to eat spaghetti again?" If the answer is "no" (followed by violent barfing), then the level of illness is great.
Such was my test result last night. (Lew's vacation started last night, too, so we were off to a great start.)
I had not experienced a migraine headache that bad in a long time. When I was finally done upchucking, Lew put a cool, damp washcloth across my eyes. I eventually was able to sleep.
Today is a new day. I believe that I will indeed eat spaghetti again.... But not until tomorrow.
I am about to head to the church for our last session of the "One in a Million" study. (This is a great video/workbook study by Priscilla Shirer.)
The gals met at my house for the first six sessions, but tonight we are meeting at the church building because it's our group's week to clean!
Will I get to vacuum? Dust? Pick up leftover bulletins in the sanctuary? The possibilities are endless....
Actually, I hope they are not endless. I'm sure all of the women in our study would like to get home at a decent hour tonight! Smile!
(Note to weathervane: Please start turning... and soon. Enjoy Dad's post! -- Tracy)
Derf Here! Another warm, humid day in the Northeast. It seems every day brings a thunderstorm. Predictions remain the same throughout the remainder of the week. Certainly lights up the night sky and causes real loud noises. Last night even caused a two hour power outage. Luckily I have a battery-powered radio and was able to listen to the Red Sox thump the Colorado Rockies. Missed the television coverage. Hope tonight will be better. Last two days in the 90s. Today only in the 80s. We are on a cooling trend. Thanks!
Sister Deb should arrive today to spend the summer at her cottage in Old Orchard Beach. Have a feeling she will be spending time with us the next few days as she is not a fan of thunderstorms. Her trip from Florida via Indianapolis and Pittsburgh will be completed today.
Sister Jean is still struggling as she attempts to improve her lifestyle. A scheduled operation is set for July 22. Please keep the prayers coming. This will be a critical step in her rehab. I'll keep you posted. Thanks!
Hope to get the walk-behind mower back in the next couple days. The trimming need is growing quickly, caused by the frequent showers. Must get my weed whacker running. Can't afford to let the meadow get ahead of me.
Front yard garden is growing. Some plants are good, others not so good. Lew has some radishes to eat.
Noticed this week my weathervane seems to be not turning in the wind as it is supposed to do. It looks like I'll have to structure my engineered ladder mechanism to get on the roof to repair it once again. I'll plan on spending my birthday for the third year in a row repairing my weathervane. Hoping it starts turning on its own. Probably not going to happen! Shucks!
Until next time!
Toodle Pip!
Derf!
Today is my niece Kaelen's birthday.
Lew and I mailed her a card, I e-mailed a giftcard to her, and I wished her "Happy Birthday" on Facebook.
But I don't feel like the day is totally complete yet, and I finally figured out why....
This is the first time in five years that Kaelen hasn't been here -- in Maine -- on her birthday!
So I didn't get to wish her "Happy Birthday" in person.
And there is no birthday cake nor ice cream to eat. (Bummer!)
As I continue to recover from "the plague" (feeling a little better today), I find myself humming Laura Story's song "Blessings."
Before Laura sang this song at the concert on Friday, she spoke of her husband's battle with a brain tumor. I, of course, began to think of Suzy. By the end of the song, I was more than a little teary-eyed.
I wasn't the only one there with wet eyes. It's a powerful song.
The audience was singing along for most of it.
Well, all of it.
Ordinarily this would annoy me because I would prefer to hear just the artist. But this time was quite different. It was the sweetness of the atmosphere. The Spirit's presence. Haunting, in the most beautiful sense of the word....
I really can't fully describe it.
But I'm so glad I experienced it.
(Postscript: Barry's blog post of a week ago, Defining 'Holy', quotes a few lines from "Blessings.")
(Post-postscript: To hear this powerfully-moving song, click on the following YouTube link: Laura Story - Blessings.)
Short post today.
Feeling yucky.
I have lost the Cold War of June 2013.
But I didn't go down easy. I put up a good fight....
Tonight I went to a concert with 24 of my closest friends!
Laura Story was at the Seaside Pavilion, so a bunch of us gals from church (plus a few family members and friends) decided we would go. We started planning this activity at the beginning of May.
I was in charge of securing the tickets. Check!
Then I volunteered to get there early with a couple other gals to save a big block of seats together. (General admission seating.) Check!
I will post more about the concert itself later. But I will tell you that I enjoyed every minute of it! A wonderful evening....
Lew's mom, Verlie (a.k.a. Grammy), went into a rehab facility today. It's the same place she was in during the Fall of 2010. And this facility is right on our road, only about a mile from our house. The location is certainly a blessing.
Grammy has been dealing with a bout of pneumonia. This illness has made her quite weak, hence the need for some rehab time.
Please pray that she is back on her feet soon!
(I was just thinking about how tall the grass was getting.... LOL! Enjoy Dad's post! -- Tracy)
Derf Here! A gorgeous day in the Northeast. A perfect spring day in preparation for summer in a couple days. According to the experts this is the start of a series of great days.
I'm writing this just before heading out for Josh's baseball game. His season is running down and then it will be on to All-Stars!
Spent the day constructively. I planted three tomato plants in our front lawn garden. Will they grow? I don't know. That was my accomplishment for the morning. Tomorrow morning I plan on lawn mowing. Can't wait!
Spent the afternoon at the Maine Cardiac clinic as Spouse had an echo-stress test. From what I understand everything went well. I will not tell you how long she lasted on the treadmill, but the professionals were pleased with the results.
Returned home and picked up meal at Ken's Place as I had to cross the street for some good seafood! It was quite delicious.
Best thing about today was that I was able to skip my usual elliptical training.
Please keep praying for sister Jean. Hope to hear tonight what the next step is in her rehab experience. Thanks!
Until next time!
Toodle Pip!
Derf!
My novel-reading usually follows a pattern.
I read the first third fairly slowly... a little bit each day. Slow and steady.
Then I start to read bigger chunks at a time, because I am now into the story.
By the time I am three-quarters of the way through, I am on full speed ahead. All I want to do is finish reading it. (And by "all I want to do" I mean in lieu of everything else that I should be doing!)
I am at this last stage in the current book that I am reading.
Thus ends my blog post for today. ;o)
(Postscript: The book is "Sharpe's Tiger" by Bernard Cornwell.)
I decided to do laundry today. I didn't get started on it until about 4:00pm. (Three loads. Sigh....)
Lew got home right after I took the first load out of the dryer. I still had one load yet to go in the washing machine. The pile was sitting on the floor in front of the machine, so I told Lew to add any of today's work clothes to that.
As I was folding the freshly-washed-and-dried load that was in the laundry basket, I came across a work shirt of Lew's that I was surprised to see.
Uh-oh.
I knew what had happened, but I double-checked with Lew first. Unfortunately I was right. He had put today's shirt in the basket with the clean clothes. (He added a pair of socks, too. Ewwwww!)
I take responsibility for this misunderstanding. But I didn't want to re-wash all of Lew's socks that happened to be in the basket. All of his socks look the same, so I pressed my nose into each sock to determine which two made up the offending pair.
Now that is true love!
First of all, "Happy Father's Day" to my father, my husband, and my bonus son. They are mighty fine fathers. :)
I wondered if Father's Day is celebrated worldwide, so I did some googling.
I learned that Father's Day is celebrated on the third Sunday in June in Canada, the United Kingdom, and most other countries -- as well as the United States, of course.
But some countries celebrate it on the second Sunday in June, some on March 19th, and some on the first Sunday in September. Check out this link for yourself: "When is Father's Day This Year in My Country?"
So take heart if you forgot to celebrate Father's Day today. Just take your dad to Australia in September!
(Postscript: Don't worry, Dad. We don't have to go. LOL!)
The weather was beautiful today! A terrific day to go to the beach.
We slept in, ate a nice breakfast, but did NOT go to the beach. It's a real bummer being sick on a nice day.
Poor Lew. He was on the couch all day, sleeping and coughing, coughing and sleeping....
Get well soon, Sweetie!
Poor Lew has been suffering from a really bad cold since Sunday. He even came home from work early yesterday. (He rarely misses work due to an illness.)
This morning I felt a little punky when I woke up. Sore throat, stuffed up, achy...
OH, NO!
I have thus spent the day warding this thing off. Rest, fluids... the regular drill.
I'm really hoping that I don't end up with the full-blown version that Lew has. But if I do get it, you all will be the first to know!
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| I love this tea! |
Last night I stayed up way too late.
I watched the end of the Red Sox game (they won), and then I switched over to the Bruins game.
It was a 3-3 tie with just a bit left in the third period. (The Bruins had led 3-1 at one point!)
It went into overtime. I actually watched the entire first period of overtime, but I couldn't stay awake any longer than that. They ended up losing in the third overtime, so I'm glad I didn't force myself to stay up.
Still, I can't believe I made it as long as I did. Especially since I don't enjoy watching hockey all that much!
(Dad wrote this post several hours ago, so I am able to confirm how today's weather has been. Sunny, rainy, cloudy, no rain, misty, sunny, driving rain... well, you get the idea... Mother Nature has been very indecisive on this fine Wednesday. Enjoy Dad's post! -- Tracy)
Derf Here! From the great Northeast! Another sunny, cloudy and damp day. The sun was bright a few minutes ago. Now it is cloudy and damp. Showers are in the forecast. Looks like the rest of the week will be damp. Saturday, however, is the beginning of a beautiful weekend. Bring it on! We are ready!
I just returned home from driving Josh to school for an exam. I'll pick him up in a couple hours. Will go through the same process tomorrow as the school year winds down on Friday.
Josh has three exams to complete. One a day for the rest of the week. He has completed four exams so far (English, math, etc.). Now, two of the last three hours exam are band and gym. I never heard of such a thing. Progress, I guess!
I must try to get our lawn mowed over the next two days between scheduled showers. I have scheduled our trimmer mower to be serviced so I want to get in one more mowing. Then, if the lawnmower doesn't get back to me for an extended time, I can miss one trimming. Still waiting for lawn to dry up so it will need no grooming. Probably won't happen.
Josh has made the baseball All-Star team once again. We hope to spend several days in the future observing the All-Star team. Congratulations, Josh!
Sister Jean is back in rehab. She recently spent some time in the hospital. Hopefully, within a month, a decision will be made to operate and try to repair internal problems. Prayers are still requested and very much appreciated. Thanks!
My front lawn vegetable garden is not progressing as I wish. It looks like I will be transplanting again. Don't know if too much rain or not enough fertilizer. Only time will tell.
Through rambling today. See you next week!
Until next time!
Toodle Pip!
Derf!
53 - Years my parents have been married. (Happy Anniversary!)
2 - Shots received by Jerry at his annual vet's appointment.
17.84 - Jerry's weight in pounds.
1 - Days that Tim Tebow has been a New England Patriot.
30 - Minutes I spent using the elliptical machine.
3 - Days that Lew has been fighting a cold. (Get well soon!)
222 - Perry Mason TV series episodes I have watched to date.
271 - Total episodes over the nine seasons the show aired.
49 - Episodes yet to see!
Lew and I went for a walk when we got home from church.
As we were going out the door, my mother called out "seven": her guess for the Motorcycle Game. (My father said "zero," but that's what he always says.)
As we were approaching the point where our game begins, Lew made his guess: Ten. I said' "higher," which surprised Lew. I told him that I would have said "lower" if it had just been the two of us playing. But I wanted to go "higher" than my mother's guess. So I decided to keep things simple.
Lew said, "So you're throwing the game." Yup.
We ended up seeing 15 motorcycles.
Ha ha! Another victory for me. And I wasn't even trying.
I may have to retire from playing this game. It's just getting to be too easy.
(Postscript: I told Lew to blame my mother for his loss.)
In the middle of the night, I heard a beep. It was followed by three identical beeps, separated by about five seconds each. Then the beeping stopped.
I figured out that it was the carbon monoxide (CO) detector warning that the battery was getting low.
I went back to sleep.
An hour or two later, I heard another four beeps. Fine. Back to sleep.
By 6:15 this morning, the beeps started again. But this time they did not stop. Not fine.
I went downstairs and attempted to open what I thought was the battery compartment. This caused the detector to do a continuous, high-pitched beep -- no stopping for air.
I put the detector on the couch and threw a pillow on top of it to muffle the noise.
I turned on the light, which I should have done in the first place. By this time, Jerry had joined me. (He likes to "help.")
I found the correct location for the battery compartment, opened it, and pulled the battery out. The wailing stopped. Instant relief for my ears.
Lew didn't hear any of the beeping. Apparently the pitch is too high for him to hear.
I guess that I am Lew's CO detector!
Today is National Doughnut Day.
Neither Lew nor I ate a doughnut. That is SO wrong! :(
It also happens to be National Chocolate Ice Cream Day.
Nope. Didn't eat that either.
Sigh....
.... No time to write a thoughtful blog post, that is!
Expecting 15+ women to get here any time now for Bible study. Gotta get ready!
Smile!
(I've often wondered if a nice rock garden would be a good alternative to grass. Enjoy Dad's post! -- Tracy)
Derf Here! 'Tis a beautiful day in the Northeast. The next few days are supposed to be rainy, at best. That is the word of the experts. Are they accurate? Only time will tell.
I usually write my blog in the morning so my editor can post it at her leisure. Today, however, I spent the early morning until about 2:30 PM outdoors doing various chores. The major accomplishment was mowing the lower 40. It sure does look good freshly mowed (even though the majority of the lawn was fashioned from a hayfield).
After mowing I was able to kill some weeds and grass with Roundup. I would like to use Roundup on the whole lawn. This would mean no more mowing. (Sounds like a good solution to me.) But I won't spray the whole lawn. I only control unwanted grass and weeds that grow in places not supposed to have the greens. I'll keep mowing weekly until the lawn dries up. I'm hoping soon.
Well the weather finally dried out and allowed the landscape company to spray our yard for mosquitoes. Three more sprayings to come. We've been spraying for several years now and it seems to help. Years ago I had a vegetable garden. As I would go to the garden during the day to perform chores, my bare legs would be completely hidden by monstrous mosquitoes. Although I no longer have a large garden, I can walk around in shorts without being bitten by our state bird. I now only give blood at the Red Cross! Seems to make sense.
Summer seems to be coming as our air conditioners have been installed. A few years ago we never used the ACs. However, last week the temps closed in on the high 90s, so we were quick to react to the weather. Now, if we need the cooling, we have it.
Derf's garage refrigerator is now operating for the summer. It is well stocked with soda, water, and ice cream novelties. Hopefully it will get used frequently in the near future. Everyone is welcome to partake!
Still asking for prayers for sister Jean. She still struggles in hopes to be operated on in about one month. The road has been tough. Thanks for your prayers.
I hope this was slightly better than last week. I'll continue trying to improve. The future looks promising!
Until next time!
Toodle Pip!
Derf!
Today I had an unexpected adventure. I was to pick up Verlie and take her home.
Problem: Once I had Verlie in the car with me, I wasn't sure how to "get there from here." Not without going way out of route, that is.
Enter Lola. (After seeing the movie "RV" with Robin Williams, Lew and I also adopted this moniker for the lady-voice version of the GPS.)
I have the wonderful MapQuest app on my iPhone, so I pulled it up and allowed Lola to guide me.
I only disobeyed her three times.
The first was when I turned the opposite way right off the bat! She "recalculated."
The second was when I didn't take enough of a left-hand turn at a crazy intersection. This did cause Lola to freak out, but I was able to recover quickly.
The last time was when I knew a shortcut to Verlie's house. Emphasis on the word "knew" -- so all was well by then!
Moral of this story: You CAN get there from here!
It's been several weeks since my abandonment of the 5:2 Diet.
It's been the same amount of time since I've seen any weight loss. In fact, I've gained. Grrrr....
With the arrival of warmer weather (finally!), I would like to comfortably wear shorts, tank tops, and a bathing suit on occasion.
So I'm giving this diet another shot.
Today was a "2" day.
I am so very hungry right now.
I can't wait to go to sleep so I can get up in the morning and EAT!
Lew and I hosted a sleepover for our pastor's two young daughters last night.
Lew had promised to make pancakes for breakfast this morning -- a promise that he made good on. (Thanks, Sweetie! They were yummy!)
There was some controversy, however, regarding the timing of the feed....
The girls were awake and asking about pancakes at 5:00 AM! I managed to hold them off for a couple hours... a couple sleepless hours. (Thank you, God, for inventing the Sunday afternoon nap!)
Despite the early morning, we had a wonderful sleepover. I love my young friends! :)
One of yesterday's photos showed a pregnant Emily.... Seven weeks to go!
Last night I asked Eli, "What's in Momma's belly?"
He answered, "Ba-by."
"What's the baby's name?"
"Adam." (Close enough on the pronunciation.)
Good job, Eli! You are going to be a wonderful big brother.
