Good morning everyone..

Tad  chilly here temp is -20° this morning, on the bright side despite the high winds last night we have no new snow!! New fella was put out yesterday as being only an inch or so of snow I waltzed with the shovel instead.
Picking up meds and getting some groceries and that is it for out doors.

Shirley, I never thought I would use the heated seats in the vehicle but even in summer I turned them on.....felt good on the back too! This could be a wonderful love affair with the Cub Cadet, so far I am impressed ..way better machine than the Husqvarna.

Jane, happy to read you are feeling much better ,now don't over do it. Instead of going 100 MPH try 60 for a while. How is Jim doing?

June ,if after the 3 more days and you are still not feeling your perky self see your Dr. Maybe he/she needs to put you on a different med.

Hope all on the east coast are safe and warm.

Enjoy your day everyone.

Good Morning Everyfriend!  It's up to 9º here this morning.  It didn't hit 0 overnight but it was down to 3 and not supposed to get above 10 all day today.  It hurts to take a breath outside.  Don't know how AMY does in the temps she gets!

AMY, I think I might only be operating at 1/2 speed right now!  i forgot to make dog food last night so have to do it this morning.  I had all the stuff ready and my brain just ignored it.

If the car starts, I'll be off to Wally World this morning at 9.  I think I really prefer the 9 - 1 shifts.  I still don't have to be ready at the crack of dawn and I'm home in time to have a decent lunch with my doggies.  I don't ask for much now, do I?

Jenny, I was happy to read that your dad finally got some much-needed attention.  It must be so hard to have him so far away and needing help!  I must remember that when my Texas daughter gets a bit testy when I don't tell all! 

I think the timer went off for the doggie food so I'll wish you all a good day and warmer weather!

Good morning everyone, what a day yesterday. I tried going online but every time I did the power blinked on and off so gave up. We got 16 inches of wind blown snow. Last night when the snow stopped falling it was hard to tell because the wind was blowing it all over. The cars in the parking lot have no snow ohe roofs and it was piled up on the east  facing sides of them. Maintenance man kept plowing the walks and even the porch. That wasst time I saw the porch covered with snow. Very cold, too. Started at 10° and will be dropping all day. The plow truck was here several times during the night and of course he woke me every time.

JANE  I turned my thermostat up to 90 and still could not warm up. Wind was blowing through the cracks in the cheap windows. Whistled all night, still windy.

JENNY  Grayson was as bad or wose here than the forecasters said. Glad I did not have to go out. Sounds like your Dad should be in the hospital.

AMY  just heard on local news we might have another storm the beginning of next week.

PHYLLIS  I have no desire to go outside in this cold and wind. In a way good thing it is so cold because the snow is light and the wind blew most off the roofs. I gave up knitting and crocheting almost 10 years ago, my hands kept cramping.

HAL  56° would feel like summe here right now.

LARRY  no school here yesterday and today. Too darn cold.

JUNE  glad you called the RN for some help a last.

DON  I live in senior housing and would love a retirement home but here they are very expensive. Glad this town has a car to take us to doctor appointments but not for shopping or anything else. Enjoy tour time in Israel.

MARY ANN  we have public transportation but I could never walk to the closest place to get a bus. If I really have to go someplace my son will take me but I do not want to take advantage of him.

SHIRLEY  those jars of cheese made stuffing celery easy. Now I use cream cheese and mix different things to it, like some with chopped cherries,or black olives or crushed pineapple or what ever. That is what I make to bring for holidays now. There are 2 different retirement places that have ads on TV and one looks wonderful but not for my wallet.

JENNY  glad your Dad is finally getting some help. Congratulations to Mark and getting what he has worked so hard for.

JUST heard on locat weather that with the wind chill it will feel like 20 below zero at times today. Another day I will stay inside.

AMY  I like Canada (my Dad was born there) and Canadians but I wish they would stop sending their cold temperature here.. Yes I know you get it from further north but sto being so generous and sharing it with us.

Good Morning Everyone!

Our cold spell is over and no freezing temps last night.  It is suppose to get right back up there, temp wise, the rest of this week.  Winter isn't over but January is our worst month.

Jenny, happy you father is finally getting some attention.  He must have been absolutely miserable.

Janie, hope your car starts this morning.  The cold, cold weather is rough on a battery and everything else on a car and living things.

I have got to get a move on.  9 AM apmt

good Morning girls/Amy and JaneS I see and everyone else that come in later on. we are a bit better of on temp. today, it is 10º now and calling for 26º for the high.  I forgot to tell yo all the other day but janeS brought it back , talking about dog food. the other day when i was feeding the cattle lucky she not paying attention got in front of the front wheel on the tractor. herd her yelp looked down and seen her get up behind the wheel and run away from tractor.
she as all dogs that get hit with a vehicle did learn, she still runs right in front of it like daring you to hit her again. she seams to have no after effects. that was 3 or 4 days ago. have a great day.

Lloyd

I'm off to Wally World!  Maybe all the shoppers will "shop at home" today!

Hi Everyone.  It is another beautiful morning here in South Carolina although we will stay in the mid-30's today.  I did enjoy my morning out yesterday having coffee with a couple of friends and the hour at the Wisdom group.  I had to wait a few minutes to pick up my grocery order as there were two cars ahead of me.  I have no particular plans for today.  Pat said she planned to go to Walmart to pick up prescriptions and then to the Dollar Store to get more birthday and anniversary cards for the Sunday School card ministry.  This is the third and probably last year she will do this.  If she wants I may help her with some of these errands. 

June, glad you asked for additional help and hope the medicine soon has you feeling better. 

Hal, it seems a lot of people are suffering with colds and flu.  Hope the antibiotics greatly help you. 

Shirley and Don, I have a former boss who lives in a great Methodist owned retirement home and when I visited him he took me on a tour.  He loves living there.  He has always been a big woodworker and they let him brings all of his woodworking shop and set it up in a basement area with the understanding that it will remain a part of the property when he passes.  His wife had Alzheimer's and they had a separate unit for that care when it was necessary.  The dining room was like a fine restaurant.  He didn't tell me how much it cost him but know it had to be very expensive. 

Jenny, my wife has a habit of falling asleep in her recliner in the late afternoon and then she isn't sleepy until one or two o'clock in the morning.  Sure glad your dad is getting some help with the infection.  Great news for Mark.  Does he ever plan to play on tour? It is a goal achieved and he has reason to be proud. 

Amy, if minus 20 is only a tad chilly what qualifies for really chilly?   

Jane, hope you car started ok and that you will be able to work the 9-1 shift from now on.  Is it cold where you register is located?  If the shooppers "shop at home" today you will have a really boring shift. 

Gloria, glad to see your posting this morning and know that you have power and heat.  It sounds like the NE are due for a very cold weekend. 

Lloyd, glad your dog wasn't hurt.   

Good Morning,

Sunny again and supposed to be warmer in Central Oklahoma.  Next week forecast is for spring-like temperatures....well, very early Spring, maybe.

Miss Ellen reported 5-6 inches of snow and high winds in her area of Manhattan yesterday.  She was sent home early  from work  because there were no customers in the restaurant.

Jenny,  I was a "long distance child" when we lived in Leadville and my mother didn't "tell all", either.  Frustrating!

I always made my own pimiento cheese, too - much like Shirley's except I used grated cheese.  It was one of my husband's favorite sandwiches - although he refused to eat it the time I added chopped hard boiled eggs.  I thought it was good but never did it again.   My mother used to add chopped black olives but I knew that would never fly.
Now, I just get a carton at the grocery store and put it on crackers.

Mentioning mother's way reminds me of a little notebook I found among her things when clearing out her house.  She had listed menus she'd served for bridge parties and supper guests.  A frequent supper guest menu was "p cheese sandwiches,  p and o and pot chips".
I realized  that she meant pimiento cheese sandwiches and that "pot chips" were potato chips but couldn't figure out the "p and o".  It finally dawned on me  -  when I was using one of her relish dishes - that it meant "pickles and olives".

Have some errands to do before son brings lunch from Arby's.

Wishing Everyfriend Everywhere an Enjoyable Day.

Good morning kids, Had a good nights sleep, but woke at 4 a.m. and didn't go back to sleep. Today was cleaning day, plus the nurse was here at the same time to check my lungs, and order albuterol ? for my breathing machine, and all at the same time my breakfast was delivered, so three activities all at one time. Still coughing with icky sputum, so today will be a day of rest for sure. I am just SO thankful that at my request they did not notify Gary while they are on vacation in McCall, Idaho. I know they are having a much needed vacation with the kids and grand-kids. Fresh snowfall sent via picture on my computer..very pristine and lovely.

Lunch will soon be delivered, so I will prepare for it....,Keep safe, well and happy my beloved people. June

June, 

Hello Everyfriend!  Did I mention before that my new year got off to a bad start and had no where to go but up?  WRONG!!  The car started up fine in my driveway and I got to work on time and put in my shift (just busy enough and not too busy).  Then I happily clocked out and went to my car....which refused to start.  I had to walk from one end of the parking lot, all the way to the other end of the store to the Automotive Department and beg for help!  Nice guy came with me and jump started it and I came straight home.  It's bitter cold out there.  Now I'm in my woolies with the heat turned up and stuff thawing to be cooked in the oven for supper....more heat!  I just might take my LL Bean throw and curl up on the couch and catch a few zzzzs.  It's too cold to do anything else.

LARRY, I work 3 MORNINGS a week each week.  I'm never there after 2 p.m. and I'm usually out by 1.  I just tried one evening shift a week last summer and I'm not going to do that any more. 

I'm going to be in touch with my grandniece who attends a nearby college and when she goes home for a weekend, maybe we can connect and I can drive to her college and she can drive my car the rest of the way to her house dropping me at my sister's on the way.  Then we can do the same in reverse when she comes back to school.  I really NEED a visit with my sister and brother since they are back from the hospital.  I talked to them both on the phone yesterday and they sound better than they have in  a long time!  I appreciate all the prayers and I continute to hold all your loved ones in my prayers.

Stay warm!  Stay close! Stay well!  Stay Happy!

Not fit for man nor beast out there today! Warmed up to -14°F but windy, a lazy wing that would rather go through you than around you.!
Not a productive day here, went to town and meds weren't ready so came home and put the groceries away. Made pizza for lunch, will do that again only make it smaller. Found some zzz's that should have been with me at 3 am but weren't so I grabbed them up.

Jane, do you need a new battery?

Hal, I agree....June 

Better go see what I can get into now.

AMY, seems like this battery isn't that old.  I think it just want's to get around more.  You know about the car that the little old lady only drove to church on Sunday?  Well, this one wants to go out during the week a bit more.  Maybe I'll have to make some social contacts and drive around a bit!  I am going to call the garage tomorrow and see if they can tell me how long ago they put it in. 

Jane, yes they do need to be driven and not just to church and back. Maybe they can test the cells in it, you may have a bad cell???

Larry, many years ago a good friend was set to put her husband in the Methodist home here, very nice place, until she was told that "they would take care of him until death but his entire wealth would be signed over to them upon entrance."  I do not know what it would have meant in terms of HER care, but she was not willing to do that, and upset that they did not know the terms long before needed. 

I know that was still in effect before Cas died because one of his golf buddies thought the family planned far enough ahead & had sold the house before his/their father needed care.  The care home went back 5 years & demanded the sum the house sold for or "come & get your father".  I thought maybe the tales were slightly exaggerated because both cases there was plenty of money to pay for care.... at least for a while. I've heard of other places that are run the same way, with options of pay as you go until money runs out, or "buy" the lifetime care.   

I don't know how the rules are now, but I thought it was a fair insurance "gamble" to trade all you own in exchange for life time care..... could swing either way.  I do believe that the care facilities run by "non profit" are kinder and do more for the patients than the "for profit" places.

Jenny, happy to see your father is getting attention... and 3 cheers for Mark!  Quite a thrill to reach his goal. 

Callie, really touches our heart to find hand written notes from our mothers (or fathers)... and see what they were thinking that day.  It was a time when women loved to host the luncheons, Garden Clubs, etc.  Now & then we would get a chance to taste some leftovers... dainty & so good. 

Janie, if the battery is still under warranty (especially if Walmart), have them check... we did have a couple that wouldn't hold a charge & when checked by the mechanics, did have a dead cell (Walmart sold).  Walmart is the best about standing behind their product.  I also have a "trickle charger" that can be left on when a battery isn't up to par.  Was using on the RV accessory battery until we had Walmart in CO check... turned out a bad battery I had bought at that same store the year before... so they replaced without batting an eyelash!  So far I have not had to attach the trickle charger since replacing that battery (& it doesn't get used all that often).  Good luck.

Lloyd, so sorry to hear about Lucky, poor baby.  Glad he seem okay.  This cold weather is not as much fun as when we were young!

Amy, since you deal with the severe temps so much, do you also believe we need to breathe through fabric (like a scarf) so as not to have those icy crystals hit our lungs?   When I grew up my mother was so strict about it she made a believer out of me.  I can almost SEE my lungs shrinking up with icy air. 

Shirley, according to Dot, it is a law that any money given out in the previous five years must be retrieved.  She found that out when Norm was in Pilgrim Manor.  And his entire estate was to be assigned to them.  If there was anything left at his death, it would be prorated and some returned to his estate.  As it turned out, he was days from going on Medicaid.

I have had a bum shoulder for some time so today I went to the ER to see what I could find.  In the x-ray room, the nurse came in to take the x-ray and said, "Dorothy?"  I said, no, I'm Mary Ann".  Dot has been having severe pain in her hip area for a while and I knew she had a doctor's appointment today and found she was having an x-ray too.  Another nurse finally straightened out the nurse in my room and x-rays were taken 
(nothing different from what I knew).  I called Dot when I got home and she said that explained the mixup with her team because they said what info they had did not agree with what they had been told.  Everything got taken care of in good order.

I usually use a mouse with my laptop and I'm having one heck of a time with the touch pad to do some small things.

Mary Ann

Another day of R and R. I think i'm getting better..that inhalant stuff really helps with the breathing, but I wouldn't want to have to depend on it forever. I canceled my supper delivery for tonight. They give too much food, even half servings are too much for me. I have plenty of left overs in my fridge...in fact I threw some out today.

Had a sweet thank you card from my Dori today for the Christmas check. She is an Angel.

June Drabek you should know you should not skip your meals you should eat some good chicken noodle soup. that will help you to get well soon.
Have a great day one and all.

Lloyd

Good morning everyone, another day in the deep freeze here. We will all be happy to see it get above freezing again, a whole -3° now but wind chills -15 to 25 below zero. Last night the wind was howling so loud it woke me. Sounded like a wolf howling. It hits this corner of the building and gets into the cracks around the windows. Just heard that o0n top of Mt. Washington in NH -highest point in New England- it is -99°. Sure would not want to work up there. The son of a friend does work there.

HAL  lucky you BUT according to the last report I saw by the end of next week we will be in the 40's. Yippee, that means I will be able to go outside again. Sure I can bundle up but cannot move fast enough to keep warm.

LLOYD  glad Lucky is OK.

JANE  hope you had an easy day at WM yesterday.

LARRY  I cannot remember such a long cold spell with strong wind like this one. I am happy we did not lose power. This place has a generator but only warms the main floor and with no elevator I would not be able to get down there without help. I always liked winter and said I would know I was old when I did not like it, guess I am now OLD.

CALLIE  my Mom never had a written recipe  so a lot of what she made died with her.

JUNE  I hope today finds you feeling much better.

JANE  several years ago my daughter sent me a down throw and I really have used it this winter.

AMY  too cold here and would not survive it is got as cold as you have.

SHIRLEY  so many times on TV news you see people with scarfs up over their noses or the collars of their coats up around their faces and only their eyes showing.

Have a good day and stay warm.

Good morning Everyfriend!  Weather Bug says that it is -3º this morning and that the wind chill makes it feel like -9º!  That's COLD!  I know, it's not as cold as where Amy is but for us it's COLD!  The dogs went out and were back before I managed to close the door.  I need to go to the store sometime today so I hope the car starts!

We're waiting out the doggies pills right now so when the boinger goes off we'll have breakfast and sometime in there, I'll try to start the car.  I shudder to think what the oil bill is going to be since the furnace is running all the time. 

I hope you are all staying well, getting better, keeping warm and basking in the love of your family and friends!

Good morning everyone...

This bitter cold weather is getting comfortable here , I wish it would move on as it has wore out its welcome!
Laundry to do and make  some turkey pot pies today and soup after we pick up hubby's meds.

Shirley, the cold doesn't bother my lungs but if I have to be out a long time in it eg snow shovelling I will wear my hood on my coat. Most of the times I just wear my ear muffs.

Gloria, I don't mind the cold but this bitter cold is not nice. Warmer weather brings the snow. Temps in the 40's sound so nice right now!

Mary Ann, I use a wireless mouse with my laptop also...don't care for the touch pad. Maybe I just haven't given it a chance.

Jane, we are enjoying the fruits of my labour, pun intended. We had pears yesterday and peaches the day before

Callie, I don't think we want to bother our children, at least that is my excuse. I do worry about them and figure they don't need to worry about us.

Larry, this chilly weather is really poor company...weather guessers said it should be gone the first of the week.

June, hope today is a better day for you.

Better scoot, slept in again today..

Enjoy your day everyone.

Jane, on the bright side of this cold weather we don't have to deal with skeeters or blackflies.

Shirley,  I don't know if it is done in other states, but Maryland has something called "Nursing Home Spend down".   When my husband had to go into a nursing home, I had a wonderful lawyer, who specialized in Elder Care Law.  MY 3 sons and DIL met with him and when he explained it all,  it sounded like it was illegal.  But,  it wasn't.  I had to go back 5 years and account for all the checks I had written for EVERYTHING.  Then, they take most of your assets and divide them by half.  Did not include our condo, but just about everything else.  I would not have been able to do this if it hadn't been for my DIL taking care of getting all this information together.  It was one of the most difficult things that I have ever had to do.  I don't remember everything about what it involved, but you can look it up. I remember the lawyer telling us that it didn't matter how we felt about Barbara Mikulski, ( a Senator from Maryland) but we could thank her for getting this law into effect. Not all states have it. But, you hear about a spouse going into a nursing home and all the money is used up, so the surviving spouse is left with nothing.  This law protects that half for the surviving spouse.  It basically is putting the spouse in the nursing home, under the care of Medicaid.   Medicare covers the first 100 days of being in a nursing home, and my husband passed away on the 100th day. So, after all we went through getting into the spend down program,  we didn't have to use it .  My oldest son said at the very beginning that it sounded like it was something illegal, but it wasn't.   I have given this information to several friends who were in the process of putting someone in a nursing home. 

You might want to look it up just to see what it is all about.  My  DIL had a piece of carry-on luggage that was filled with all the paperwork.  She is a smart cookie and was able to understand it all.  It just about made me sick to my stomach when I thought about all that was involved.

Here is a link that explains some of what I was talking about........

https://www.nolo.com/legal-encyclopedia/safe-ways-spend-down-your-assets-qualify-medicaid.html


Joy

Like all of the rest of you along the East Coast, it is bitterly cold here in NC.  The temp. was down to 5 deg. overnight but now the sun is up and shining brightly so it should warm up a little before long.  Can't wait until next week when our temps. will be way back up in the 50's and 60's.

I MUST get out to the grocery store today!  Just about out of several things.  It will be a tie as to whether we freeze to death or starve to death.

Dear PHYLLIS, I sincerely hope you do neither!

Hi Everyone.  Today is going to be basically a carbon copy of yesterday in terms of the weather.  We are suppose to get to 40 late this afternoon.  I plan on staying home today.  Yesterday I went with Pat on her errands and did the Walmart items as she waited in the car.  We then went to the Dollar Tree so she could get the cards she needed and while she was in there I went down to Office Depot and got the ink I needed for my printer.  It was over $50 for the four small cartridges.  They didn't stock the ones I needed at Walmart but later I found I can order them but then have to pick them up in the store and I am not sure it is worth the effort to save a couple of dollars.

Callie, I stopped at Arby's on Thursday for a quick lunch.  I had to get one of the mint chocolate shakes and it was good and went well with my roast beef sandwich.  Of course on Friday I get new coupons for Arby's that would have saved me a few dollars.  Glad you are getting some warmer weather.  That is headed our way the first of next week.

Phyllis, you are a lot colder there than we are here in SC.  I am also looking forward to next week as the cold weather seems to be bothering me this year. 

Joy, in 1990 or the year 2000 when my dad had made the decision to put mother into the dementia unit at the nursing home he wen through a similar process in determining how much of their assets were his and how much were mothers.  Fortunately, they never had to get to that state as they had sufficient savings to pay for the two plus years when mother and then dad were in the nursing home before they passed.  This was in Missouri and he didn't have to go back five years as I recall but did have to establish what half of their assets were minus the home and car.  I have no idea of what the law is about this matter here in South Carolina although I know a lot of this is Federal law.   I appreciate that link and will print it out to put with the other papers I try to keep updated to make things easier for my wife and son when I am no longer in the picture.   

Amy, I have heard that we lose the most body heat through the top of our head.  It has been cold enough here that I have been wearing my hat when I go out along with my leather coat and gloves and I am never outside very long.  Otherwise I don't bother with a hat and wear a lighter coat.  Sure glad the cold doesn't bother you. 

Jane, I read yesterday that our electric company had the highest usage ever during the last few days.  I hope your car will start today.  The dogs know when it is smart to stay inside where it is warm.  Happy to read that your sister and brother are sounding much better.  I hope you can work it out to see them soon. 

Gloria, I don't see how anyone could work in minus 99 degree weather.  I hope you are able to stay warm in such cold weather and the wind coming in around the windows.  I don't think anyone could really like weather staying so cold for so long.  It has never made sense to me why they require the weather reporters to stand outside in the terrible cold.

June, my wife is now having to use prescription inhalers three times a day as she has asthma. Glad to read you are feeling better.  I guess it is better to get too much food served than not enough. 

Shirley, I know that my former boss told me he was gifting the maximum allowed each year to his children and he had four.  Of course, I am certain he didn't have to deal with Medicare or Medicaid for his wife as they had plenty of money.  He lives in Kansas just across the border from Kansas City. 

Hi !
All is well here on the rocky coast of Maine,
except it is very cold and slippery underneath!
Sandy
  Brrrrrrrrrrrrrr !!        

Good Morning Everyone!
Cool and overcast here this morning but suppose to get nice and warm 60 degrees here and stay around that for the next few days, but late next week more arctic air is headed our way.

Gloria, I can remember the howling winds when I lived in Canada also the pop, pop of the building on those bitter cold nights.   Could never figure what was shifting. 

Well I managed to give my wife my cold and she is in bed trying to sleep it off.  Hopefully she gets to feeling better soon.   My throat is still sore but my cough seems better.

Larry, the price of ink is terrible.  I used to order the generic years ago and then they put all the electronics on the cartridges and if you tried using them it screwed everything up.  I joined the HP instant ink program and they ship them to me as needed.

I will more than likely watch some football this afternoon and make a run to Wal-Mart to pick up some groceries.  Got to get an order in shortly.  Out of dog food and wife said we needed other things.

Janie hope your car started.  One of those trickle chargers might be what you need.  Or just start your car and let it run for 30 mins or so a few times a week.

Everyone have a great day

   

Car started twice so far today.  I started it and let it run 15 minutes last night and it started right up this morning.  I hope it starts tomorrow morning because I have to read the lesson at the 8 a.m. service. 

Cathy came and took me with her to the Amish store this morning.  I spent my Christmas Gift Card and got all the stuff I still needed including a large bag of Beggin' Strips for the doggies. 

Now I'm going to hibernate the rest of the day unless I get warm enough to go shop the BOGO at Giant.  But I think I'll leave that for tomorrow morning after church when I'm already out in the cold!

One of the things I got at the Amish store was a Hoagie (most of you call them Subs) for my lunch.  I'm enjoying it as we chat.  Wish I could share it.  It's delicious!

HAL, some things we do NOT share with family members...such as colds.  That wasn't very nice of you to give yours away to your wife.  I sure hope she feels better soon. 

I'm off to see what I can get into!

Warming up here -13!!! Wind is so bitter still..had thought about hanging the bedding out but it was just a fleeting thought.
We went to the dump this morning and I was so tickled to see the bald eagle...but then he flew and soar and oh my what a beautiful sight!!That made my day.
Better get back to laundry........hoe hum...