July, 2021 Chit Chat!

[Virginia]

Since Agate may be burning up in Oregon and Ann might be doing the same in Boston, thought I would try to get us started for July.

We are now half way through the year, so I guess one could say Thanksgiving and Christmas are practically upon us. However, before we start making plans for our Holidays I think some of us might have to deal with some more hot weather. If all our air conditioners hold out we will be fine, if they don't we could be in deep trouble. However, don't get too upset thinking about it since there is no climate change.

Here's hoping everyone has a good month with no problems health or otherwise. July 4th is almost here and I think that we can all agree that this is our most important Holiday. So glad we won that war!

Maybe DAR will be released if she hasn't already been and we can all wish her a Happy Homecoming.

It's good to see Sunshine posting a little more.

Happy July everyone!!!

[Lazarus]

Thanks for starting us off in July. The heat here is tough. I do farm work early in the morning and late in the day. Actually by Saturday at the farmers market the weather will be in the upper 60’s! Such extreme shifts are frightening but I will be happy on Saturday! I actually dug red potatoes for the last 2 days. They are so tender that the skin shows my fingerprints when I pull them from the ground. They are so tender that they are almost sweet since start here has not formed yet. (Something like that)

be well everybody!

[agate]

Virginia, thank you for starting this thread! I have been really busy here just now.

Venturing out to get the COVID-19 vaccine was a project for me but luckily the heat had broken by yesterday, and it was only in the mid-80s. The vans and the hospital were air conditioned.

I was given a sticker to wear--it said "Pharmacy--Visitor"--upon entering the hospital but don't recall anyone taking my temperature. I did have to fill out a rather involved form at the pharmacy that asked about whether I'd had any symptoms.

They didn't ask for the photo ID after all but they did want the Medicare card.

I had a choice of vaccines and a choice of arms. The shot hurt far worse than a flu shot but the pain didn't linger. I still have an ever so slightly sore arm but so far no other problems.

I was impressed by the way the hospital was handling things, routing people and triaging us as needed. They seemed to have their ducks in a row.

The pharmacy had made it clear to me over the phone that I might have to wait while they took care of other customers. I did have to wait but they had already told me what time of day would be least busy, and there were only a few people ahead of me in line.

Now that is done, and I can flash my card at anyone who doubts that I've had this vaccine.

This apartment building announced its reopening yesterday, and all of the furniture was put back in its original place. The cushions are back in the sofas and armchairs, and the common rooms will be allowed to have any number of people in them.

I've been recovering from the heat. When I was out in the van riding around yesterday, I noticed that grassy areas have suddenly turned brown. The heat must have done that to the grass because so far the drought hasn't been a big issue. We haven't had forest fires yet but are bracing for them.

You're right, Virginia--these heat extremes are just little things that happen now and then. We can't talk about climate change because it simply doesn't exist. Those charts showing that summers have been getting hotter over time--those are all a hoax.

Hoping Dar will check in soon. Wondering too about others who haven't been heard from in a while. People coping with problems don't have a lot of time and energy left over for posting on message boards, but we're grateful when members check in and let us know what they've been doing.

[agate]

Howie, if you're reading here, it looks as if Social Security will be coming through tomorrow, July 2. Here's hoping!

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Hugs to All)))))) ~

Virginia ~

Thanks for starting July's chit chat thread! I'm not even in the vicinity of thinking about Thanksgiving and Christmas. I need to take one holiday at a time.

Linda ~

What a blessing for you and John to have cooler temperatures for your Market on Saturday. Our weather has been unusually balanced, so I expect we have some heat waves in our future. I'm sure your potatoes are delicious, as all of your produce is.

agate ~

I am so glad that you didn't experience adverse effects from the vaccine. I know several people, who had the J&J vaccine, who didn't have any side effects, other than the sore arm. I'm curious why you chose the J&J vaccine. Was it the only one offered at your location?

I was asked for my ID, and the form I filled out requested my Medicare #, but I didn't have to show my card. I'm not sure why they want our Medicare number, since the vaccine is free. I had a list of COVID questions, with "yes" and "no" answers to check. It was a simple, short form, but I was so anxious that I made several mistakes.

How do you feel about the apartment building reopening?

I also hope we hear from DAR, and lots of other folks, who have been absent recently.

Prayers, positive healing and energy for all ~ Be well. Be safe.

Love & Light,

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Rose

*Virtual Hugs Are Germ-Free!


THANKS!

[agate]

Rose, I was delaying on getting the vaccine until I could get the J&J and until it was offered at a location I felt I could get to and cope with, without having to impose on anyone who would need to stash my wheelchair and me in a vehicle and possibly wait with me for many hours, then bring me home. It seemed like too much to ask of anyone.

Some places have wheelchairs available on the premises, and choosing one of those might have been OK except that there would still be an imposition on someone's time and energy.

I wanted the J&J vaccine mainly because it meant only one round trip instead of two. Transportation isn't so simple when you rely on a paratransit van service that is so vast that you hardly ever get the same driver twice, and so you're just a load to each driver--sort of like a sack of potatoes that has to be dropped off or picked up.

Riding on such a system for over 30 years now, I've learned what it's like to be forgotten about and left to wait and wait somewhere. "I don't see your name on today's manifest" is a sentence I hate to hear. And what it's like to be mistaken for another passenger or to have another rider mistaken for me. When that happens, it means a wait of many hours because they have to reschedule the ride, and apparently that's hard to do. I bring my iPad with me so I can at least play some solitaire games while waiting. (I play Russian Revolver, Accordion, Golf, and TriPeaks.)

There are also the drivers who don't know how to get to the destination but don't know English. With GPS in most of the vans now, that problem may be going away. I hope so.

Yes, I saw the importance of getting the vaccine, but I have far less contact with people than many do--and so figured I could hold out for getting the vaccine when and where and how I wanted it. I'm trying to make life easy these days.

Ideally I wanted to get the vaccine done before summer's hot weather. I didn't quite make that goal, what with the heat wave threatening to last through Wednesday but by some stroke of wonderful luck, it cooled off on Wednesday.


I just refuse to wear myself out doing anything any more.There are things I have to do, and they occupy 90% of my time. Since I do absolutely have to do them, I seem to have made up my mind to do them in ways that don't wear me down to a frazzle.

What is a frazzle?

_________________
I'm not sure how I feel about this building's reopening. I'm happy for the people who make frequent use of the common areas--some who use the computers, the TV, and play cards or do jigsaw puzzles, or have a weekly bingo game with a potluck--because they can have the social life they must have been doing without for the last year and a half. These apartments aren't really big enough to have much of a social gathering in them, and so the common areas are useful. Some people even sign up the common room for private parties and have fairly big bashes there, with all of their friends and relatives coming from elsewhere.

For a long time one man who has a marching band in which he's the drummer was holding practice sessions regularly there--but the noise was too much for some residents, and that stopped. It really was quite a lot of noise.

I'm not sure it's a good idea to open up the building this much. We're not out of the woods yet on this pandemic.

[Virginia]

I haven't been doing much here. I have taken care of some business and today I vacuumed downstairs. I have been very fatigued for a long time now it seems. So tired of it.

Today my pregnant niece called and talked for a long time. She and her husband are having a cookout at their house on Sunday for all the family. I really want to go, but just don't know if I will be able to make it. Also, I hate to call my brother to come and get me and bring me back. If I feel like it I will try to go. On Monday she is going to the hospital to have a cesarean section to get their little boy. He flipped and hasn't flipped back so they have to do this. She said she would send me a picture Monday.

Her Mother-in-law from Ohio is here until about the 19th of July. My Niece likes her MIL, but she said she would really have liked to have had some time for her and her husband to get settled in as a family of 3. I reminded her that it will be a family of 5 because of their two 12 year old Labs.

She worked today and I am not sure about tomorrow, but I think she will work, then have everyone over Sunday and go into the hospital Monday. Of course she has her MIL to help, but her husband does most of the cooking for a cook out and her Mother who lives just down the street does a lot.

I know this is kind of bittersweet for all the family. Her Grandmother on her Mother's side has dementia. She is 4 months younger than I am. She has totally quit eating and drinking. My Niece said she didn't even know if she would last until after she gets out of the hospital. She and her two brothers have always been so close to their Grandmother. At least the baby will take their mind off a lot of that. She did say that they didn't want to let go of their Grandmother, but on the other hand they didn't want to keep her the way she is. So things must be very bad.

Well, think I will go get ready for bed. Y'all have heard all my family news for now.

[agate]

I hope you can go to the cookout, Virginia. Those cookouts can be relaxed occasions where you can be as active or as inactive as you want, and nobody will mind either way.

[Howie]

Agate, a frazzle is the same thing as a frizzle. I figured we would get paid today, so I went to the store yesterday, and I'm in for the weekend.

[agate]

Agate, a frazzle is the same thing as a frizzle.

Thank you for clearing that up. That's what I like about this place. You learn so much here.

[Virginia]

Howie, glad you got food all lined up for the week-end.

Linda, my brother got me some more of those teeny/tiny little potatoes that I like. I don't think they are as tender as yours, but they are good. I wonder where they come from? Maybe they get ripe before they get big.

Glad to know there is no difference between a frazzle and a frizzle! Now that will not bother me anymore.

I don't recall seeing Ann around in the last few days. Hope nothing is wrong there.

[stillstANNding]

I’m here and reading. Thanks for thinking of me Virginia. Peter felt bad about not flying down there to help you change your bed so he went up and changed ours - turning the mattress in the process. I slept great that night.

I’ve been going to PT twice a week. I really like the place - a hospital outpatient rehab department close by - and my team. They’ve been adding and eliminating exercises as we go - making some more challenging and correcting my form to actually work the muscle they are targeting. It’s a progression - something I can’t get from a book or a video.

While the Northwest was having such a scorching time, we had a heat wave of our own. It was the usual hazy, hot and humid type and did set records for several individual days but stayed in the nineties. Still, somehow, an MS body knows when it’s hot and humid even if it hides in air conditioning. (Sigh). I was very tired and had several episodes of TN which meant more meds causing more fatigue. ( second sigh).

During the heat, I snuck out early in the morning to water the garden and especially pots and pick what every was available to pick. By ten, I was draping shade cloth over lettuce and the younger tomato plants to protect them from the constant, high sun. It’s a job (the garden) but I love it.

Tuesday was Peter’s last day working from home. I’ll miss that. Friday I made soup which I also really enjoy. I call this one Miracle Vegetable. We are now in a cold, rainy pattern. It was 57 at 9 AM and is all of 59 here at 3 PM. A good day for a bowl of soup.

Best to all,
ANN

[Earth Mother 2 Angels]

((((((Hugs to All)))))) ~

Prayers for all of you, who are in Elsa's path. While Elsa is a tropical storm, she is carrying heavy winds and rainfall. Hurricane season is here for you. Fire season is here for us on the West Coast.

President Biden spoke today about his infrastructure plan, including addressing climate change. He said that last year on the West Coast, 10 million acres were burned, the equivalent of Delaware and Maryland combined.

ANN ~ sending you positive energy that PT helps you tremendously. I'm sure you will miss Peter, as he stops working from home. Please share your recipe for Miracle Vegetable soup. I can't possibly replicate it as I would imagine you use your garden vegetables to create it. But perhaps I could try.

This morning, I lost my internet connection. My modem went funky. I tried unplugging it and replugging it. After an hour, I called Spectrum. The automated response rebooted my modem. It didn't work. So, I called and spoke to a tech, who suggested that I need a new modem.

Thankfully, I bought a back up modem a few years ago, and the tech walked me through installation. I am so grateful that I had the back up modem and that I was able to figure out with guidance how to set it up. My experience through the years with Spectrum tech support has been positive. They are always patient and understanding with me.

When I told the tech that I don't have WiFi, and I use ethernet, he said, "That's fine, and it works for you. There is nothing wrong with having ethernet." I appreciated not being pressured into getting WiFi.

I am also grateful that this was a modem problem and not a cable problem, requiring extensive rewiring in my home. I know that needs to be done eventually. I'm just not up to it now.

Thinking of everyone and sending healing, positive energy and prayers for you all ~

Love & Light,

❤️❤️❤️❤️

Rose

*Virtual Hugs Are Germ-Free!


THANKS!

[Virginia]

Rose, I think we are only going to get heavy rains tomorrow. We'll see, but so far I am not too worried about this. It is going down east I think and then maybe to the outer banks. That is the last I heard on the news which was a day or two ago.

Glad Spectrum tech works well for you. Sometime I get a good tech who really does take their time and helps me a lot and then other times I get someone I cannot understand. I think they would like to help me, but if I can't understand them there is not much way they can. I feel like I am paying an arm and a leg for Spectrum services so maybe since they are charging a lot they try to give good service. I have cable, landline phone and internet. I don't know if that is what you have or not.

[Sunshine 2]

Agate, the local VNA goes to people’s home who are essentially medically like you in terms of mobility etc. I wonder if VNA or your health dept knows of such a service.

The vaccine is incredibly important as there is no herd immunity, and although you have minimal contact with people, you DO have contact with some.

J and J can work, but is less effective than Moderna and Pfizer. So, if they go to your home, choose those.

How about your daughter (or is it a son?) Might they take you for your vaccine: seems like around here you can easily get them at pharmacies, major grocery stores, without having to sign up. You just show up, like with a flu shot.

Does this work for you?