Quarantine and chill and kindness chatty clubhouse: Jump in and join the conversation! All is welcome!

[easyas123]

Good morning all. We also recorded All Creatures, but haven't watched it yet.

@easyas123, I've been to Sassafras NRMA. See anything noteworthy? And too bad about the exposure. I hope you stay COVID free

Welp...we did see one bald eagle and two rednecks in the wild , both of which I can see at our house!!! We hiked all the way back to the old house site on Lloyds Creek, around some of the fields and back. I grew up living part time on a boat on the Sassafras, and as you know lived in Galena for quite a while. I'm only about 20 minutes away now but don't frequent the area to much, so it was nice to gaze out on that part of the river.

the missing FL pkg has finally made it from MD to FL-

That's good, better late than never...maybe. How frustrating not be able to depend on the postal service and get a straight answer on something with tracking. I've been waiting since end of Dec. for a replacement credit card I had to order for my folks, AMEX said they sent it, but it's not here yet.

I've checked in with the office, so now we just go get tested later today and hope our results come back quickly, and negative. Husband was scheduled to be at a federal site this morning but luckily that was something that can wait, and it was looking like a pretty quiet week for me so I'm glad we didn't have to rearrange our work schedules to much for this testing. I do have a meeting Friday morning, but at least I can do that from home worst case scenario.

Beef stew was all gobbled up last night! So no leftovers....I am going to crock pot a pork roast today for use as lunch this week, and we will either have some of that or a piece of fish or shrimp w/ salad for dinner.

New bike seat showed up Saturday, husband put it on yesterday. Said it was much better, so I'm off for my morning exercise - no more excuses!

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Good morning all!

Thanks, Lynxstch We don't have a safety pin. Did try with a couple things to move the string but it would only go so far. Don't want to remove it completely just in case that would deter a refund. I did find a You Tube video that showed a guy using a safety pin to put back a drawstring. He said a paper clip could work as well. Actually these were not shipped from Amazon but from one of their sellers so it'd be a refund not replacement. I would much prefer the replacement because this exact pair is out of stock. Other colors cost more money. Take it easy today please!

Easyas123, prayers your test goes smoothly an is negative!

Have a good Monday friends.

 

[easyas123]

New bike seat showed up Saturday, husband put it on yesterday. Said it was much better, so I'm off for my morning exercise - no more excuses!

I'm happy to report that the new bike seat was a gazillion times better!

 

[Breezy_Carol]

Good morning.

DD gets vaccinated today. DH is trying to get an appointment. Very frustrating website.

Contractor is here for the septic. Not only do we need a new drainage field but the holding tank is cracked so we need that too. Ka-ching.

we did see one bald eagle and two rednecks in the wild

How frustrating not be able to depend on the postal service

I want to pay a doctor's bill but am afraid to mail it. Just got a call from church. We were to do altar guild this week but the schedule changed and I haven't received the new one that doesn't have us on until 1/30. Glad she called.

Beef stew was all gobbled up last night!

We are having left over stew tonight.

Going to be looking out the window a lot today to watch the work.

 

[Owlpost23]

and prayers to you Tina for healing, peace, and future fun travel, too.

It's cooler here today but still much nicer than a couple weeks ago. It may be in the 80's later in the week!

Pajama FYI to share regarding PJ's that have drawstrings. Should the drawstrings be looser and/or longer be sure to tie them before washing the PJ's. I have a pair where the drawstring on one end has completely come out. No way to put it back inside

Have a good afternoon, everyone.

Have you tried a safety pin on one end and inserted it to thread it through?

 

[Breezy_Carol]

I forgot to mention. I did enjoy All Creatures Great and Small. I don't usually like shows where the actors have accents but got used to it and enjoyed the story.

After must frustration, DH got an appointment for the vaccine tomorrow. He still has an active health care provider license. I let mine expire.

@easyas123, glad the new seat is better.

 

[easyas123]

Contractor is here for the septic. Not only do we need a new drainage field but the holding tank is cracked so we need that too. Ka-ching.

Ouch- yeah.
Would you believe we are given contracts to upgrade existing treatment plants and to build new-very big- treatment plants but we aren’t allowed to fix the septic system or replace holding tank in our own yard!

Public Service for anyone who uses them-worst thing you can flush down your toilet is those darn wipes! And if you are in a public system it will royally foul up your pipes & or grinder pump where you tie in...and that cost is all on the homeowner!

Everyone in household seems to be feeling ok, although husband reports not feeling “100%” but fully admits he thinks he’s over thinking it! I hope so-

After must frustration, DH got an appointment for the vaccine tomorrow. He still has an active health care provider license. I let mine expire.

Oh, good news! Good luck to him-

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Dad fixed the drawstring using a pen from the Candy Cane Inn (which we normally stay at when spending the night at DL)! He ended up breaking the pen but saved the pajamas. I removed the drawstring completely. We tied one end tightly to the straight end of the pen and worked it along. Always make sure to tie a thin drawstring before laundering!

Easyas123, so glad the new bike seat is more comfortable. Hope your DH feels better soon!

Thanks, Owlpost We didn't have a safety pin. I saw on You Tube someone using a pen. That worked!

I agree, Carol, about accents. I'm glad you did enjoy the episode. I'll check it out shortly. Payers your DH's vaccine goes smoothly tomorrow!

 

[tazdev3225]

Morning everyone.

Been a couple days and too much to respond to so Prayers for those who need them.

We had the drive-by Baby Shower yesterday and all I can say is my great grandson is going to be a well dressed little boy. They did get diapers, enough baby wash/shampoo and lotion to keep him clean for quite a bit, and some other essentials and were waiting on a few things. I am so happy it worked out well and we got to watch her open the gifts on Facebook. My son and DIL, the baby's other grandparents sent NOTHING!!! Then he wonders why my grandson has issues with him. I did not raise my son to be like that but there have been issues for years with his ex and his wife. They need to all grow up.

I have been checking google all day for news of the sentencing in England over the knife attack in Reading on June 20th. The American killed was the son of friends and I was heart broken when I heard he had been killed. I knew Joe from before he was born, one of the first babies I ever felt kick. I even have a picture holding him right before I got married. He was such a sweet boy and a lovely young man. Always had a smile on his face. Thankfully the man who murdered Joe and his 2 friends was given whole life. Basically it means he will never get out of prison except in a box. I pray this gives his family some peace.

I also managed to get 3 more cabinets cleaned out and boxed up in preparation for the kitchen being redone. It's amazing what you find buried away that you forgot you had. I found 3 stoneware pieces I bought at least 20 years ago that I never used. My one daughter is taking them. I am excited to get the kitchen done but nervous at the same time. Now if I can just get appliances ordered. Lowes and Home Depot are impossible around here and Best Buy they act like I am bothering them asking questions. I may start complaining to management if it keeps up.

Dinner tonight is going to be ham sandwiches with left over ham from last week and Pasta Fagioli soup that my daughter made yesterday. She gave me the leftovers as there isn't enough for her family but just enough for my husband and me. She amazes me at how well she cooks because she never wanted to learn when she was at home.

Going to relax a bit and may tackle one more cabinet today. Have a great day.

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Once again, started this yesterday but never got to send.

The pants thing happened to me recently with some favorite pants, too. (They are uniform pants.) The string/strap only came out, but broke too, thankfully remaining long enough to still function. I wound up bringing the pants to the lady who sews for me and she fixed them for $10, well worth it to me. (I think she undid the whole seam and then re-sewed it.) Funny thing, I made sure to tie them when I washed them again and it happened again! We normally have the patience to push things back through with a pin or crochet hook (which I bought just for that purpose), but since these are nylon, it wouldn’t work that way as it kept collapsing on itself. Glad the situation is resolved @FlyingDumbo!

Watched the show last night and we all loved it, even DS and his girlfriend. (DD was working so we recorded it for her, but we also have to watch the Dr Quinn DVDs so we can get them back; the set I ordered still hasn’t arrived yet.) They are used to us having Dr Pol marathons on and got the concept right away, and also saw the humor in it, which was really what the book series was about! I was remembering that at one time here, I had Dr Herriot in my avatar, with a horse!



It is a little difficult to decipher what they’re saying sometimes with the accents, but a trick I learned with Outlander was to put the Closed Captioning on, that way you can understand it better and it all makes more sense!

Here is an article I sent out to the family, thought I’d post it here, too. It should be a great series and I am thrilled it’s on! (I actually didn’t like the last series they did, I found the main characters annoying, but that’s not the case here, thankfully.)

https://triblive.com/aande/movies-tv/tv-talk-pbs-reboots-all-creatures-great-and-small/
The real James Herriot, James Wight.



https://www.avma.org/javma-news/2011-07-01/modest-veterinarian-beloved-author
We got a little housebound last evening (early) we went out to do a few quick errands, then got an ice cream and took the dog for a walk by the beach. It was so cold my hands were numb when we got back in the car! But it was good to get out.

I took some pics of a couple of dishes we made this weekend. The chicken stew in the crockpot - though at first we forgot to put the peas in, added a little late! And pork chops with onion and garlic jam. Both were really good. We have steak tips marinating for tonight.






@lynxstitch You are a cleaning machine! I have some projects I have to tackle, one is my room. Hoping to at least get started on that this week. I’ve been helping a family friend get into college (success last week, finally!) and start to register for classes, so I have a little bit of that to work on today, making a grid of which classes are available in her time frame and helping her sort of ease into it rather than taking classes at first that might be too overwhelming. She’s super motivated, though, which makes her easy to work with. She wanted to do Nursing right away but has to take the back door in first, which so many have to do as it’s hard to get in many of these programs. But we got her foot at least in the door and hopefully now she’ll be successful with some prereqs so that she can eventually transition into the Nursing program. Good thoughts for her welcome! I love seeing motivated young people who want to become nurses get started!

Have a good day, everyone!

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Hugs, Taz Dev and good to see you! I am so glad the drive by baby shower went so well I am sorry about the choice your son and DDIL made Prayer and hug on Joe, how tragic.

Thank you for the lovely pictures, Pea! Those are great. Many years ago I did read the biography his son wrote and enjoyed that very much. I admit to not getting caught up in the episode from last night but will try again another time. I definitely will put All Creatures on my saved library list! I am sorry about your favorite pants. I hope they have held up well! How kind of you to be a mentor to your friend. You are making a difference to her

I'm finally warming up here!

Here's hoping each of you has a good afternoon

 

[Pea-n-Me]

Thank you for the lovely pictures, Pea! Those are great. Many years ago I did read the biography his son wrote and enjoyed that very much. I admit to not getting caught up in the episode from last night but will try again another time. I definitely will put All Creatures on my saved library list! I am sorry about your favorite pants. I hope they have held up well! How kind of you to be a mentor to your friend. You are making a difference to her

I'm finally warming up here!

Here's hoping each of you has a good afternoon

I read that, too! Loved it. Thank you. Glad you enjoyed the pics.

 

[flyingdumbo127]

I'm glad! All Creatures was a special book. I enjoyed all of series. I remember when we first had Champ as a 2 month old puppy recalling from one of Herriot's books to place a wind up alarm clock next to Champ because it would offer comfort (sound like Champ's siblings or mother's heartbeat). I honestly do not remember whether that worked or not just that lol I wanted to spend the night with Champ

 

[easyas123]

Well, going to get our Covid tests was a rather pleasant experience. Getting our hands on the results, not so much!

So we had to go downtown in Annapolis, a rather easy drive. Parked in a city garage and walked a block or two to the testing center --- big tens in a parking lot! We all had appointments, and we all went in right away. At registration they confirmed we had gotten a text message confirmation. Three out of 4 of us had not, although we had gotten email confirmation. Evidently they send results via text...so they gave us a paper w/ a number on it to call if we didn't get a text in about a hour or so. Testing itself was the dual nose swab but not the half way into the brain swab, thankfully! 30 seconds and done, ladies giving the tests were very friendly & pleasant. In less than 5 minutes all 4 of us were done and on our walk back to the parking garage!
Before we made it back to the car my sons girlfriend had her text back - negative. That was around 1:20 PM
I finally called the number they gave me at 3:20 PM and that is where the confusion started. The lady who took my call said "oh, I have your results in my pile of people to call". At that point I thought, oh no. Positive. They were SURE I should have gotten a text, they walked me thru everything. Even asked me to re-read the email confirmation I got from them. Then asked me to go on speaker phone and double check my text messages....as if three people who were all waiting for text messages somehow didn't notice them come in...so after we established that at no time had any of the 3 of us gotten text messages yesterday to confirm, or today to confirm or provide results they then gave me the results for all 3 of us over the phone. Negative. So that is good. We all got both the rapid and the PCR tests, those results ought to be back within about 48 hours give or take. Why she had our results in a pile of folks she had to call never came back up - Other than needing to schlep 50 minutes each way over to Annapolis & back in the middle of the day, not the worst 2 hours I've ever spent!

So, for anyone who has to get a test, this simpler nasal test is a lot less invasive and not uncomfortable or painful at all like the other one. For someone like me - I medical procedure sissy of the highest order - I was very relieved!

 

[flyingdumbo127]

Easyas123, I am so relieved for you it is done and you are negative! I am not in any way a going to the medical doctor fan!

 

[easyas123]

Easyas123, I am so relieved for you it is done and you are negative! I am not in any way a going to the medical doctor fan!

We walked in the tent and I could smell rubbing alcohol, which usually makes me feel liike I’m going to faint! I started sweating then!

 

[Breezy_Carol]

@easyas123, so glad you all were negative.

@Pea-n-Me, closed caption is a good idea but no one, including the young'uns have been able to figure out how to turn them on on our tv.

Also, I have 4 James Herriot children's book. My favorite is Only One Woof.

We decided we needed to get out of the house. Took a drive for some errands like the drive through bank and library return. Then drove to the Conowingo Dam on the Susquehanna River so look for eagles. We saw 4, even one catch a fish. And we saw some heron there too. Walked a little outside along the river. It was cold but a worthwhile excursion.

 

[sparkle78]

Glad to hear it wasn’t so bad. I find it very interesting how each state is doing it differently. relatives in WV said all the school teachers 50+ and those over 80 in their county had been vaccinated right before Christmas. Cousins in OHIO told me, they vaccinate those in nursing homes, health care workers , etc, in first group and then starting the beginning of February will have vaccines available for ALL teachers whose schools agree to go back in person by march 1st and those residents over 65. Why the difference in neighboring states ?

 

[sweetpeama]

We don't have a safety pin.

Safety pins are a must in the emergency clothing items department. They are useful for so many functions besides reinserting a drawstring.

Zipper goes out when your not at home and can just put something else on-grab some safety pins and you can at least hold it together at least long enough to get through the day. Replacing a zipper is a different department.

Kid manages to step in the hem of a garment pulling it up after using the bathroom and tears out the hem so is now walking on the bottom. You guessed it safety pins to the rescue.

Button comes off your shirt a safety pin to the rescue until you have time to find a button that matches in the collection or the little envelope of the ones that came attatched to a sleave-you know the one you know you put up in that particualar spot but it's not there. Or is that just me.

DH and my dad got the starter in the car to finally turn over and start but the engine is not running now. They don't know if it is not getting gas or it has bad gas from sitting since last June/July or if somehow he got some gas that had water in some where though the stations that there were huge problems with that have all basically been shut down. When I was in high school and just out of high school my dad had a list of places for us on the never get gas there I don't care if your on fumes and are just going to get enough to get down the road to the next station. If I have to take out and replace the tank and lines one more time you are going to be learning how to do it. If that is the case call me and I will come and bring you a can of gas lecture.

Personally I wonder if my mom is not praying this takes a while as my dad is occupied with helping DH get the car running and thus is not in the house bothering her. Things are slow over at the friend's place my dad helps with the farming as it will be a while before they need to think about making sure all the different equipment is running for spring planting. It is too early to start things for the gardens as even our early start plants will still be another month to six weeks before we can get those going indoors. Due to covid my dad can't spend as much time as he would like looking around in pawn shops as many of them are closed or being restrtcted to you can go in say I am looking for this item and you either get told no we don't have one for sale or yes we do and this is the price. My dad likes to wander around those and see what he spots that strikes his fancy so this is cramping his style.

Girls and I have 4-H tonight so I am going to get ready to take DH into work in about 45 minutes. After that I will come home for a while and the girls and I will head out a little over 2 hours later to go to the meeting. Come home after that-will at least drive by the grocery store since it will be closer to close and see how crowded the parking lot looks. If it doesn't look too bad might stop in and grab a couple of things. Then I will wait until DH gives me a call to say that they are getting close to being done and put on my shoes and coat to go pick him up from work.

Tuesday morning no one had better call me at 8:30 in the morning like I got this morning from the dentist office to reschedule an appointment for 13 year old since the primary dentist that she is familiar with and sees is going to have to be out and did we want to swtich to someone else or a different day. We are going with a different day and also moved almost 16 year old's as well. That way it is not two seperate trips in especially since they were scheduled for tomorrow and if DH needed to take the oldest in that would be time away from getting the car running.

 

[PollyannaMom]

He's one of those types that have to be busy all of the time. So he cleaned my oven.

Gotta love productive boredom!!

@easyas123, glad to hear covid tests were negative!

DS had his pre-semester test today as well - negative - in order to go back up to school this weekend. The break looked so long at the beginning, but the end came up so fast!

My living room is full of "packing piles" again, and he has started getting emails from professors about which day his cohort will have in-person vs. Zoom for each class. I'm hoping they have a good semester!