Was It Worth It?

 A follow check-up with my surgeon this morning. I'm in my 3rd year into recovery after breast cancer and they check me every six months. His office is adjacent to the hospital and parking there has gotten ridiculously difficult. I drove around about 20 minutes before I happened upon an empty spot and grabbed it. Made me late getting into the dr. office.

So, at these check-ups all they do is weigh me which I could do without thank you! My blood pressure come next. it was 112/70. Great! then the P.A. comes in and makes the exam which takes about 5 minutes tops. I won't go into that. Then, I leave. It just doesn't seem worth it, all that hassle parking and then walking and walking and walking to get into the building. 

I entered the building one way and so I tried to exit it the same way. The alarm I set off was still going on when I finally walked out of hearing. They need better signage. And, I was told that the company won't build a parking deck "because we aren't busy enough". BS. excuse my language. 

Okay, so now I've vented. I'm good now. 

Meatloaf and taters!!!

 My, my it's Tuesday already. Where does time fly? Maybe I need to ask Chatgpt that question.. haha  I wonder what it would say.

Recently my youngest, Susan, sent me these cute little magnets.

They are folded paper bouquets and are cute as a bug's ear. I love how they look on my fridge.

 I'm not much into fridge magnets but these don't fit into the category of 'I don't want that.' These I do!

My bifocals had been bothering me big time. Just this glare right where I want to read so I took a prescription the eye dr. gave me and ordered me some new lens, the progressive kind where there's no dividing mark on the lens part. Anyway, I wanted my old frames so I had to leave them so they could put my new lens in and I am having to wear an old pair of glasses that I'd expired years ago until my new ones are done. Talk about adjustment!! 

After I got finished with the new glasses order, I decided to drive downtown to a restaurant that does country cooking. I don't go by myself usually 'cause the sidewalk is in terrible shape in that area and also there's a pretty steep slant going up to the front door. But, I got a parking space right in the front door and that was perfect. Here's what I ordered. 

I do love meatloaf and mashed potatoes!! 

Cooking for one is the pits!

Yes, I know I can freeze the leftovers. Maybe I resist cooking because if I go out to eat I don't have to cook. 

   Yes, that is it!! 

Anyone else out there tired of cooking? 

Stocks of Tobacco Drying

 Today's another Friday Favorite Fotos: 

This one is from October 2018. Shirley and I were traveling along I-8I I believe it was, going from Virginia to Alabama to visit my son. I've seen a few tobacco fields but smoking was losing it's hold on people to a great extent in more recent years and I wouldn't see as many. On first sight we didn't know what we were seeing but soon discovered that it was tobacco drying out in the field stacked like a bunch of teepees. Of course, we had to have a picture of it. 

Years and years back, when my kids (who by the way are grandparents now so it was awhile) were young and their Dad, Elbert, was a sailor and we moved around alot, we'd stop in Tennessee on many of our trips to visit my husband's sister and her family. We often stopped by to see her husband's dad and mom,too. His Dad grew tobacco and I remember one time we stopped and found him out in the tobacco field planting his tobacco plants. Elbert just grabbed a bunch of seedlings and helped Mr. Hinkle get them all in the ground. Here is a picture I got from my niece of her Dad plowing their horse/mule.  

Have you ever worked in a tobacco field? Maybe picking tobacco worms off the plants, or planting plants or even maybe seen a field of tobacco growing? 

It was a thrill for me to see those shocks of golden leaves spread out all over the ground back in 2018 for it brought back lots of memories for me. 

Living Alone and Loving It

 

Mercy Me!

I opened my eyes this morning and through a blur I tried to focus on the digital clock nearby. Surely that couldn't be right but it was! 

It was 10 o'clock. 

Living alone is something some people hate, others relish it and you might say that I am one of the relishers. I've never minded being alone. There are times when I'd much rather have my own company than that of some people I know. And, goodness knows, I've spent many, many years giving to others,  being there for them and now I guess you might say that I am selfish. I 'relish' those times when I can do pretty much darn well what I please. It's freeing. it's exhilarating. 

So, how does a person live alone and enjoy it! 

1. You can do whatever you like. You are the boss, the CEO of your kingdom.

2. You don't have to do dishes every day. The sink holds quite a collection until you run out of clean silverware.

3. You can eat whatever you want, when you want. Or not. 

4. Bedtime doesn't have to be when someone else says they are sleepy. Heck, you can go to bed at six if you want to, or stay up all night long. Have an all night party, one invited.

5. If you don't want to get dressed, you can wear your jammies all day

6. You can watch whatever you wish on tv. I wouldn't suggest scary  movies... remember you are alone, the boogie man might get you.

7. If you want a pet, fine. If you want 10 pets that's alright but just be sure they don't wander over to the neighbors house. They might not be into pets like you are.

8. Who said you have to make your bed every morning?  It's a waste of time.. you are just going to crawl back under those covers in another few hours anyway. Use that time to do something fun.

9. There's no one who disagrees with your decisions, your politics, your religion. So, no arguments.

10. Enjoy YOUR life. You deserve it. 

Michael Stacked a Peck of Peppers

 It's Friday Favorite Foto Day!!

Today I chose a picture that is interesting in the fact that it doesn't look real. Like, I mean, how do you stack peppers. Peter Piper picked peppers but I don't believe I ever heard of him stacking them. 

But, leave it to my son who is quite the gardener. He takes after his Daddy who loved to plant and harvest. I don't know which was best at it but I sort of would lean in Michael's direction, not his Dads. 

Michael has been square-foot gardening for some years now and every year has quite a bounty to feast from. Here he is with his sister, Shirley, inspecting his veggies. 

I was visiting and he'd gone out to gather the peppers,

 

he came back on the patio and proceeded to stack three on the patio table. 

I love the different reds and greens in his display. 

Fall, a time of Joy

 Fall, to me, is a time of joy mixed with a tinge of sadness. I think the sadness comes because of the passage of time. To me that is important for I am on the downhill slide of life and I guess I want to hang onto it for as long as I can.

But...that time of joy. The heat dissipating, the changing colors, things and people in a flurry preparing for a winter which lies ahead. That all is a cause of joy. And, the birds that fly overhead in search of a warmer winter, the butterflies that take a long sip of nectar from flowers now in their passing days. It seems to be a time of preparation and also a time for reflection. I gather my 'nuggets' and store them away. those nuts of happy memories so that I might drag them out and live them again on a cold snowy day. 

Each day is filled with new discoveries and yesterday I witnessed something I had not seen on my balcony before. A Cloudless Sulphur butterfly happily sipping nectar from the last of the lantana blossoms. I got so close and watched it in awe. That memory was one of those nuggets that I definitely will pull out when I am wrapped in a warm blanket watching the winter encase us all.