Saturday, May 18, 2013

For Carol

here's the fuchsia I just bought... and our antique apple tree... our stone garden... and my bear... loops I mean bird feeders.

182 comments:

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
sorry about your tummy troubles... hope the fuchsia brings a smile to your face.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
I had a lot of stomach problems several years ago. All the tests proved negative. I finally started to search this here internets and found several places that told the tale of how coffee can sour a stomach... and even if drunk only in the morning it can still affect the stomach all day long.

I gave giving up coffee a try.... and it worked... immediately. Don't know if it will work for you... but it might be worth a try. I still crave coffee at times... I love it... but it sure doesn't love me.

Coreen said...

Hey Renee, love the view you have from your windows...the garden looks pretty lush, did it happen quickly up there...

Coreen said...

Carol, sad about your medical issues...hope between your instincts & your doctor you figure it out soon...

Maybe Renee's suggestions might work...not being a coffee drinker have no frame of reference about it...

Carol said...

Thanks Renee. Perfect. Can't believe you ever even had snow there. You guys have been working hard.

Renee, I gave up coffee three weeks ago along with just about everything else I love.

Love the post!

I came to my house to mow. Another symptom I've had is severe fatigue. I have to beat myself to get out of my chair but I'm doing that. I drag Maggie here to the house every day and out for 2 short walks. Once I pretty much ruled out most of the terminal diseases I feared, I started making myself do as much as I can stand.

Carol said...

I quit my soda also and my frig full of dark chocolate Gold Brick eggs.

RebelliousRenee said...

Coreen... it's mostly greenery... except for the few tulips you see and some gone by daffodils, most of the flowers haven't bloomed yet.

Carol... unless those Gold Brick eggs are causing the problem, I say bring them back and enjoy. Take care.

Carol said...

Renee, if you do try to take a pic of that bear, you must consider that bears do like the taste of cameras.


A grizzly Ate My GoPro!!! GoPro HD

jan said...

Carol, I had a scope done on my esophagus, stomach and duodenum as I have been having reflux for years and stomach and abdominal pain off and on for over a year now. Not as severe as you are telling us however.

The scope showed I have pretty bad esophagitis. Biopsy showed no cancer though. missed that bullet for now.

I was pretty worried because my dad died of stomach cancer. He was 90 but nevertheless, it worried me.

The GI doc put me on Omeprezole -2 times a day for 8 weeks. I will see her in June - at end of 8 weeks. I cannot tell you what a difference this has made for me. I can sure do without the reflux. If necessary, I will take the Omeprezole the rest of my life - if needed.

I have to have my colonoscopy redone because the GI doc said I was too uncomfortable to finish- she got to a hard right turn and she said she could not finish (I was moaning too much- don't remember that) unless I was under a general anesthesia. So will repeat that sometime soon.

I guess this all boils down to - I needed a GI doc.

I hope you will find a GI doc. I think you need one.

I Love you much and want you to not be having this pain.

jan said...

Renee, the pictures of your place are absolutely gorgeous. Thank you for putting up this post. Makes me want to see more green - but alas we have lots of brown.

Carol said...

Thanks for the info Jan. I've tried all the stomach meds but maybe I needed a higher dose. I was even worried that maybe they were causing some of the pain. Some of the pain does feel like a bad indigestion but it moves all over my abdomen. I do have problems with indigestion often.

I do have a GI doc. She's did my colonoscopy last year. I've never had a gastroscopy. Not too cool with the idea of someone stuffing something down my throat.

Carol said...

Coreen, I'm jealous of your 50 inch TV. I have a 47 inch at the house and only 30 something here at the camp. I like the house TV much better. I love to watch those nature shows and they are sooo much better with a bigger screen. I need to start looking for one. It would be better if I got it somewhere that delivered but I'm sure it would be much more expensive there.

Carol said...

Jan, I read that Christina and Ceelo will be back for the next Voice season. I like Usher and Shikira better now. I read some of the comments and it seems that many others do also. They did say that Shikira and Usher will be back for the following season.

It also said that Idol's dropping in the ratings.

jan said...

Carol, I was not too keen on the gastroscopy but I did not know when they did it. I was out. I do recommend it as then you know what is going on. I was anxious about it but glad it was done now.

The omeprezole is a miracle drug for me. No more reflux and pain waking me up in the middle of the night.

Yes, Idol has dropped a lot in the ratings. They said goodbye to Randy in the finals.

It was surprising that 5 women were the finalists and they were all good. The woman that won - should have won.

jan said...

I liked Shakira. I liked Blake Edwards and Usher too. I do like the way they work with the contestants

jan said...

Carol, I wanted to treat myself for the GI issues and I finally gave in and am following what the GI doc wants to do. Glad I did. She is young and from another culture - I think Asian. I have decided to trust her judgment.

jan said...

The GI doc ordered a bunch of tests (blood, stool, etc) celiac, amoeba, c-diff- again she is young. I had an appt with my primary (they are both at UNM) and he asked me why she ordered all of them. I did not know. But, they all came back ok. So, in a way it is good to know. But I do have to wonder too why she ordered all of the them. Again, no wonder our health care is so high.

jan said...

Renee, I gave up coffee years ago too. I found it made me jittery. I do drink tea in the morning. One bag in 2 1/2 cups of water, so not very strong, but I need a little caffeine. My husband drinks about 4 cups of coffee in am. Does not seem to bother him.

RebelliousRenee said...

Jan... my problem wasn't with caffeine... it was with the acidity of coffee. I've gone back to drinking tea. I love Earl Grey double bergamot. Both my parents were from Canada... and like the English, they drink a lot of tea. That was all that was in my house growing up... had my first cup of coffee at the age of 30.

My mother had a beautiful teal teapot made from a good potter friend of mine. When she passed away, I inherited it. I cherish it.

Coreen said...

Sorry about that Carol...needed the 50" for the family room where my mom sits...actually the one I watch most is a 25" in the room with the computer or the 32" in the kitchen...Hardly ever watch the 55" in the living room...

About paying extra for delivery, that worked much better for me, they unwapped, set up the flat screens, (you need 2 people to just fasten the screen to the base (I don't want wall mounted) they took the old sets & all the carton stuff, had both tvs set up in less than 1/2 hour...no need to make a trip to the dumpster to get rid of all the packaging...remember I have to pay for trash pickup & on top of it, they don't take everything...like cardboard, that has to be cut into a certain size, tied & left with the recycling pickup, not the trash pickup...so instead I wind up taking cardboard boxes to my office's cardboard dumpster, but that means I have to load/unload it in my car trunk....

So bottom line, the extra delivery/removal charges were well worth it for me...

Coreen said...

My preference has always been tea...my morning tea is regular old black tea...salada, red rose, tetley...but Bigelow makes some really nice teas (& they are local company from Fairfield)...Earl Grey particularly....that is my eening tea choice....

Rarely have coffee, other than a cappucino sometimes when out...
around here, you either like starbucks or dunkin donuts if you are a coffee drinker...for me, starbucks is soooo overrated...

Coreen said...

Carol, this one's for you....

"Such is life in the Louisiana reality TV boom, which began in earnest in 2010 with the record-setting premiere of 'Swamp People' & has apparently not diminished. "Duck Dynasty" & soon "The Governor's Wife" about the 85 year old former LA gov (former prisoner Edwin Edwards & his 34 yr old wife this summer.


Seeking fame inthe bayou? get rea, for TV producers, nothing tops Louisiana

Carol said...

Coreen, we do have some colorful peeps here. I thought I heard something about our x-gov doing a reality show. I wonder how long he can sustain that. He was pretty colorful in his past but what does he have now?? Might have been interesting while he was in the Federal joint.

I've gotten into the reality shows filmed in Alaska. It amazes me how people live there in that brutal climate.

jan said...

I am a lipton girl. I will drink other teas for b'fast if I cannot get lipton.

jan said...

I must try some other teas.

Edwin Edwards was a young gov when I lived in Louisiana in 1970's. He was suspected to be corrupt then. LA loves their colorful politicians.

Carol, didn't Katie's older sister have some kind of meeting with Edwards? Seems like he hit on her.

Carol said...

Jan, good chance if she was in arm's reach of Edwards, he hit on her. Yes, he was a crook and we still voted for him. I did when he ran against Duke, the KKK guy. Remember, they had bumper stickers saying...vote for the crook, it's important.

Carol said...

At least we didn't elect the KKK guy.

Carol said...

I'm watching the Weather Channel. They're covering those tornadoes in Ok live. It's scary. Don't you guys have some relatives over in that area? Where do they live?

Carol said...

Hope your relatives have a basement.

jan said...

Carol, yes we have relatives and many friends in OK. The tornado that hit Shawnee OK is where my sis lived about 25-35 years ago. Shawnee is about 20-25 miles from Ok city. I have a nephew and his family have just moved back to Norman OK, close to OK City. They were in TX. He just wrote on FB that his family had left and he is only one there and he spent the day in the bathtub. As usual, the tornadoes are hitting the trailer parks. Poor people, that is all many of them can afford.

jan said...

The rest of my family live in northeast OK which is about 100 miles from OK city. Shawnee is on I 40 and on the way from Alb to Little Rock.

jan said...

Got a laugh out of your comment about voting for Edwards rather than Duke. I had forgotten that.

jan said...

We have a 48 in TV. It is about 9 years old. John is itching to get a new one with a better picture. We have a lot of windows in the room and so pic is not good except at night.

Carol said...

Jan, I can't see why people are even allowed to live in mobile homes in tornado alley. It wasn't just the mobile homes that had problems, there were lots of nice big homes ripped up, but the mobile homes ended up in another town. I couldn't live with that all the time, especially if I had a family to also worry about.

It's weird that looking at their radar and the skies yesterday on TV, it didn't look as bad as what ours can look like and they have tornadoes falling out of the sky everywhere. It's just the difference in the atmospheric conditions. I guess it's a good thing we don't have many tornadoes because we can't have basements around here. A basement here would be called a indoor swimming pool.

jan said...

Took our little dog Ryley in to the vet to get her teeth cleaned. Bathed her last night. She will have anesthesia and an IV. We feel like traitors but has to be done. It is impossible for us to clean her back teeth. I can clean her front teeth.

jan said...

There really is no place in western OK that is safe during tornado season. Western OK is so flat and not many trees so the tornadoes are bigger and stay on the ground longer. Northeastern OK is not quite as vulnerable.

jan said...

There are not that many basements in OK either. Some people have storm cellars, but not that many. When I was growing up, most people in the country had a cellar.

Carol said...

Maggie needs her teeth done also but she has that trachea problem. It scares me to have it done. Why do we have so many problems with dog teeth. I never had any of my dog's teeth cleaned before and they lived to old ages and didn't lose their teeth.

Coreen said...

Jan, Carol, Not just dog's teeth, cats too & yes other than trying to chip away
the plague when you bring them to the vet for a checkup, cats too need to be anesthetized to clean their teeth...& hate the thought of that...the answer from vets is that the buildup in the teeth cause other problems for cats...

Carol said...

Coreen, I've had cats that lived to be over 20 years old and never had their teeth cleaned either.

Carol said...

I don't think it's good for animals to have to keep going under anesthesia. I also think that Vets see these teeth cleanings as a nice addition to their income.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
I've taken 2 cats to the vet recently (one was actually this morning)... one is 14 the other is 15.... the vet recommended both have their teeth cleaned. To have them both done would be about $1000.

I've had cats all my life and have never had their teeth cleaned. I get these cats from shelters... I give them a safe and loving home. I keep up with their yearly shots. I put Frontline on them monthly to keep away ticks and fleas. I feed them "cadillac" food... Wellness. But I'll be damned if I'm gonna start putting them under anesthesia yearly for teeth cleaning.

I agree with you... it's a money making racket.

RebelliousRenee said...

BTW.... I've recently had an interesting experience concerning my dentist. About 5 years ago, they talked me into getting my teeth cleaned 3 times a year. They said it was because I was a diabetic and a clean mouth can prevent heart problems. He was very aggressive about doing this... so I agreed.

Rick retired recently and we no longer have dental insurance. When I mentioned this to him in my last visit and that I'd prefer to go back to 2 yearly cleanings because of now having to pay out of pocket.... he said "no problem".

But I still have diabetes... and I'm sure a clean mouth will still prevent heart problems. I guess it really was about milking the insurance for all he could get in the first place.

jan said...

Carol, Maltese and other small dogs do have teeth problems and she will absolutely not allow me to clean her back teeth and those are the ones that are bad. She has had a bleeding lesion on her face and been on antibiogics for 4 wks. I just got a call from Vet. She is done but she had a back tooth (upper) that was badly infected and was cause of the facial lesion just under her eye. They extracted the tooth and she will be on antibiotics another few days.

I looked up Maltese and they generally have bad teeth. So what are you going to do?

jan said...

Interesting Renee. My dental insurance will only pay for 2 cleanings a year. I use a water pic 2X a day and an elect toothbrush. That works pretty well.

jan said...

I really don't think the vet is milking this.

jan said...

Carol, Lobie did not have problems with her teeth. We got her those chew bones and I think they helped. ryley will not chew on any of those things that keep their teeth clean.

RebelliousRenee said...

Jan... it does sound like Ryley needs the cleanings.

I brush with an electric brush too and faithfully floss daily. I've been blessed with very good teeth. I've had very little problems and for years have just needed cleanings.

The thing is that at the time, Rick's employer had just switched to a new dental plan. I'm now thinking that that plan paid for 3 cleanings if it could be justified and the dentist knew it. At the time I thought it was weird that he'd suggest another yearly cleaning as I always got an A+ on my visits.

Coreen said...

Now who are the cynical ones here today?!...

Not good to not have confidence in your vet...so far my vet has not pushed the teeth cleaning that requires anesthesia...

As for dentists/doctors doing tests, procedures when covered by insurance vs. not when cash payment well that is a whole other story)..we see that with clients & physical therapy for injuries, usually there is a set number of treatments that individual insurance plans cover, so that is what is prescribed by the doctor...

I guess having long ago lost any
particular awe for the medical profession (probably never had much anyway) no surprise that they would diagnose, prescribe etc based on the amount of income they get through insurance payments, just listen to any of them today about the bookkeeping required to
get paid these days...

For years, docs had a blank check, if you had health ins. (most of the time through employers) they just billed & got paid whatever they billed...any wonder why the medical profession always had the highest paid professionals (yes, even higher than attorneys) but then came the days when insurers started to look at the costs (for whatever reason, likely profitability, they were forced to
adapt to the rules that insurers started to implement as to what & how much was paid for services)...& not happily I may say...

Coreen said...

Jan, Glad to hear that Ryley did ok with the procedure...& hopefully removing the infected tooth will solve the problems...

And Jan, you are one of the fortunate to have dental ins coverge in whatever plan you are on...that is generally an extra
premium even in employer health plans, just like vision...& yes
even with the coverages, there is a limit as to what is covered...

The health care/insurance is an issue that continues to bedevil everyone...the one thing that has not changed regardless of what
has been done, ie...obamacare
is that those of us that pay for insurance have seen no break with the costs, they continue to go up(&that now includes Medicare supplementals)...& honestly that was the only issue that most wanted addressed, but as usual politicians failed to
listen/hear what was being said by the majority...so we all keep paying more...

Renee,suspect it was a big change for you & Rick, to adapt the ins.
coverges available outside the employer/group plans...

Coreen said...

I get my teeth cleaned twice a year, never had dental insurance included in any health insurance, but like Renee, fortunately I have had little work over the years...mostly now replacing old silver fillings with a white filling that looks like your tooth, luckily I didn't have many
to begin with...

Carol said...

Yes Jan, some animals do need their teeth cleaned. Maggie is one, probably because I've fed her that home cooked food. I do give her Sci Diet dental diet, hard stuff, after her two meals and in between. It is best to feed animals hard food instead of the soft stuff. I do still think that this teeth cleaning has become a racket. Look, everyone of us have been told that our animals need dental work.

RebelliousRenee said...

Coreen...
we still get our health insurance through HP. Part of the deal Rick got for early retirement was to be able to stay for 3 yrs on HP's plan as long as he continued to pay the portion he usually paid while he was working.

We'll find out what Obamacare will mean for us in another 2 years.

Carol said...

There's a serious tornado going through Moore Ok. It was headed toward a high school. I pray that is missed that high school.

Carol said...

Two schools were ripped to shreds.

Carol said...

How do they protect the school children at those schools??? Do they have basements??

Carol said...

If anyone's into praying, I'd recommend doing it now for the people in that town.

Coreen said...

Reports that in 1999 tornados ripped pretty much the same area that just got hit in OK today?!...

Tornados may be one of the worst natural disasters imaginable...Tornados seem to just
rise in an instant & cause such devastation in a blink of an eye...

So far we are fortunate not experiencing tornados like the midwest does...

Coreen said...

cnn reports in ok basements very rare because it is rock & would be exceedingly expensive to blast to make a basement....most are on cement slabs, but sometimes, owners actually build a storm shelter in their garage by blasting the slab & literally blasting into the rock to dig out a small shelter....

Carol said...

Coreen, I think it may be worse than that 1999 tornado. Today wasn't supposed to be as bad as yesterday. You couldn't pay me enough to live in that area.

I was looking up tornadoes in La this morning and we've had quite a few here over the years.

I watched a special the other night that said all 50 states have had tornadoes. They also gave info of what to do if you don't have a shelter. Never open the door or a window. It causes the house to blow up. Don't get in a bathtub unless it's in the center of the house with lots of walls surrounding you.
If you live in a elevated camp, kiss your ass goodbye.

Carol said...

I think there will be many casualties in that storm. Damn.

Carol said...

I was looking online this morning and they sell these little storm shelters you can plant in your yard but what do they do about the schools??

Carol said...

The weather channel has the best coverage.

Coreen said...

Carol, here houses have concrete basements, for the most part,
that is the foundation of the house...it is dug out, cement is poured there are metal pieces rebar if I remember the name that are used in pouring the foundation....then on top of the foundation the house is built...

My basement is the footprint of the house, it is st least 8' high, most of it below ground, thee are a couple of windows at ground level, there are steel beam supports for the above floor, as well as the wood flooring foundation on top of the basement, staircase up to main floor & also metal cellar door that goes outside (it has a few stairs up to ground level... the basement holds the furnace, hot water heater, a.c. ductwork, the well water equipment, water tank, oil tanks, electrical boxes, septic pipes, plumbing pipes, all the things that make the house run...

Coreen said...

And most buildings have basements here as well...we don't have very much slab construction...

Coreen said...

And there are limited numbers of trailer park homes as well...

jan said...

My nephew is a doc and in Norman Hosp. He just wrote on FB that their hosp is on generator power and waiting for patients from Moore OK. His family is still in TX but feeling vulnerable.

jan said...

Hope they got the children out of the schools before the tornado hit.

jan said...

Yeah Carol, lots of other people did not want to live there either. Remember, OK is where the Trail of Tears ended for several Native Amer Indian tribes. It was called IT for Indian Territory before it became Oklahoma.

jan said...

Another big tornado hit Moore Ok in 1999.

jan said...

Ok, I see that someone else here reported the Moore OK tornado in 1999. I have been at work and missed some stuff.

jan said...

Ryley is doing ok. She is sleeping a lot. We have some pain meds for her but will wait till bedtime unless she is showing signs of pain earlier. I did feed her a little wet, soft food earlier.

Carol said...

Jan, they said this tornado is three times worse than the 1999 one and there were at least 75 kids and teachers in one school in the hallway. A kid who got out said teachers were laying over their students trying to protect them. There are pretty sure that there will be many deaths.

Carol said...

Glad that Ryley is home and resting.

Carol said...

Great performances on the Voice tonight. I needed some musical healing. Couldn't deal with another minute of watching the pain in Oklahoma. I wish that by feeling other people's pain so much I could lighten their load but it won't. I've barely gotten over Sandy Hook. That started my downward spiral that I'm still trying to crawl out from under.

jan said...

I had a home visit to do so missed some of news and missed some of the Voice too. I just heard there were more than 50 deaths.

jan said...

I hear you Carol. You do feel these tragedies very deeply.

jan said...

Not many basements in NM but we have one. Just 2 rooms and a bathroom and a small room that has the furnace and water heater and some storage area. The woman that had this house built was from Illinois and I think she was thinking of tornados.

jan said...

Carol, It is amazing the confidence in Danielle Bradbury - for a 16 year old. She could win this if there are a lot of young kids who watch this since she is the only youngster on here.

Carol said...

Jan, they all did so well that I wouldn't even know who to vote for so I don't vote. I hope they all will have successful careers. I do think that their coaches will be helping them do that.

jan said...

I think they are all good too. I do have my favorites. I think my #1 is Michelle Shamualle. She was the best of tonight. The song she sang tonight was made for her. There is a vulnerability about her that is very appealing.

Carol said...

I agree Jan.

RebelliousRenee said...

It's so sad looking at the devastation that tornado caused in OK. I don't know how those people live there.... I guess home is home.

I see OK's 2 Republican Senators... James Inhofe & Tom Coburn... have both repeatedly voted against disaster relief funds for other areas. So what are they to say now.

I think that OK should get the funds.... they are Americans in trouble. Our government should help.

jan said...

Renee, OK is one of most conservative states in the U.S.

I too wonder what Coburn and Inhofe will say now about disaster relief.

jan said...

Yes, home is home. I grew up in OK but do not care to live there any longer. My mom and dad are deceased. My 2 older sons live here and youngest in Southeast AR.I do like living close to my kiddos - as I have grown older. Before moving here we lived in Northwest Ar. and I had a small home in far northeast OK. where I was working. Always weather stuff going on there.

Carol said...

I recognize both of Republican Senator's names as two AHs but didn't know they both voted against disaster relief. Typical Repubs. It does seem that they would be sympathetic since they represent a state that's has a history of disasters.

I checked into TM last night and with a group who are all seriously concerned about what goes on in the world and the environment, there was not a mention of that killer storm yesterday. KGC did in a way but it would be difficult to know that that was what she was talking about. I think it's because the subject is just too scary to talk about.

RebelliousRenee said...

Jan... Inhofe is the Senate's leading climate change denier.... says it's all a hoax... I wish he were a hoax.

Carol... TM is largely a political site. And it wouldn't surprise me if they (and a lot of other people) are becoming "disaster fatigued". So much happening all over the world. Climate scientists now say we have more Co2 in the atmosphere than they ever been able to measure. This is just the beginning.

Carol said...

I don't know Renee. Some of those people live in places that have tornado risks. Today, there's a 6/10 torcon for the Dallas area. Blue lives over that way. They just had a tornado over that way the other day. They are talking about it today. Maybe they just passed the shock and disbelief stage.

Carol said...

This video will warm your heart even in light of all the horror!

Tornado Victim, Barbara Garcia, Finds Dog During CBS Interview (VIDEO)

That dog reminds me of my last fur baby, Beauregard, called him Beau.

Carol said...

That video is sure to jerk a tear from ya.

Carol said...

Renee, I'm still enjoying your pics.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol....
that video jerked quite a few tears from me.

That's the kind of stuff I like to concentrate on after a disaster.... the little miracles.

Carol said...

"That's the kind of stuff I like to concentrate on after a disaster.... the little miracles"

Me too Renee. I can't believe that they both survived in that totally destroyed house.

Carol said...

It always amazes me that people will survive these horrible disasters. I expect thousands of casualties and there usually aren't as many as I would think there would be. They found over a hundred people alive last night.

Coreen said...

Seems the video of the woman finding her dog is everywhere...

A little ray of hope in the unimaginable devestation...

When tragedies like this occur, still wonder is it fate that some survive while others don't...have no idea, but makes me wonder if it is all decided & we have little control over events...

BTW started reading Dan Brown's latest 'inferno'...along with watching yankees games...& last night's game was a lot of fun, as long as it ended the way it did!...

Carol said...

Coreen, we're starting to think alike. I wonder the same thing. Does that scare you?

Let us know how you like Dan Brown's new book.

Yanks looking good. Is Jeter back yet?

Carol said...

I'm happy to hear that all those children they thought were missing and possibly dead have been accounted for. At least I think they are.

I'm glad the media is focusing on all the wonderful stories of love coming out of this nightmare.

Carol said...

And those elementary school teachers aren't just teachers, they're guardian angels. God bless those teachers.

Carol said...

Renee, looks like you will be getting some rain and maybe a storm or two. Nothing serious. Didn't you need some rain? Do my Fuchsias need some moisture?

Carol said...

Did any see who got eliminated from the Voice? I was sorry about one of them. They are all so good.

Carol said...

Maggie woke me up to a thunderstorm. No, don't think there is any worry about a tornado even though I had something last year...remember? It did a number on that huge pine tree, kinda ripped it in half and took part of the roof off this camp. They did have tornados tracked thru town that day. Our tornadoes are piss ass compared to those in tornado alley.

I heard that the reason tornado alley has such a problem is because they have three lines that come together, dry desert wind, cold mountain wind, and Gulf moist wind this time of year.

I've learned a lot about tornadoes and Oklahoma in the last 4 days. I heard that it's hard for them to dig shelters underground for some of the same reasons that we can't have basements. They have clay and water in the ground also.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
yeah.... it rained pretty heavily during last night. And yes, we do need the rain. It's very hot and humid up here and will continue for a day or 2.

You know how much Coreen says she hates snow... well that's how much I hate humidity.

Fuchsias do need a lot of water... especially with hot weather. I've been watering it every other day. The blossoms are opening up and it's attracting hummingbirds.

RebelliousRenee said...

Hey Coreen...
a new season of Gordon Ramsey's Masterchef starts tonight. No hockey game... so I'll be watchin'.

Coreen said...

Didn't watch the voice, but was it the 2 guys who left...

And DWTS picked the right winner, Kelly was the best from the beginning...

Coreen said...

Renee, I will check out Masterchef, like that format better than Hell's Kitchen...

And with your Bruins up 3 games to zip, looks like your hockey season will contunue for awhile...

Coreen said...

We had rain early this morning, & the humidity has been offensive for a couple of days...I did turn
the AC on yesterday...

one of the reasons I could not live in FL is humidity & the fact that you essentially have to live with AC the majority of the year

Coreen said...

And last night's Yankees game was good until the 10th inning!!!...

Carol, no Derek is still not anywhere near ready to return...he was in the dugout the other night...I am still not convinced that he will be back this season...

Coreen said...

And about humidity & the south...can't remember, was it Carrier who invented AC, the south should have monuments to him or whoever it was that did, since that surely was the catalyst for
growth of the south...

I do remember that it was Henry Flagler & his building railroads throughout FL that made FL a coveted destination for all the cold-weary northerners way back when...that & AC...

I cannot imagine living in the south w/o ac...

Carol said...

I don't think many people live down here without AC. My SF hated it and often kept his off and he wore those hot farmer overalls. When I visited, I turned it on. I was afraid he was going to cook himself.

jan said...

Kelly and Derek won. They were the best. Kelly turned out to be an amazing dancer. I thought the young girl was good to but not as good as K & D.

jan said...

I just read that Josiah and Kris were eliminated last night. I thought Kris was great.

Carol said...

I was wondering how the Bruins were doing. Never cared for hockey and we even had a team here for a while. Can you believe that?

I did check on Pure DWTS online to see who won. You liked Kelly better than Zendaya?

Yep, it was two guys who were eliminated last night on the Voice, Josiah and Chris Thomas. I was really sorry about losing Chris Thomas. I loved his voice. Did you see the show last night? Shakira sang with Chris and Sasha and it was beautiful. Also Blake sang a song with his wife, dedicated to Oklahoma, his home state. That was moving.

Team Shakira: "I'll Stand by You"

Carol said...

I read somewhere that Blake and his wife may be having some problems. They only see each other about 50 days out of the year. Don't think that would be too great for a marriage, especially when they are both around a lot of other beautiful people.

Here's the song they did last night. Click on their video. Watch how they look at each other. I see NO look of love there. I almost felt uncomfortable watching them perform together but it may have been because I had read that gossip.

Blake Shelton and Miranda Lambert: "Over You"

Carol said...

Also, thought it was an interesting choice of songs..."Over You"

Carol said...

My doc gave me a bag full of Nexium samples early this week and told me to take one twice a day until my belly ache was gone. I'd already taken a prilosec the first day so I only took one. I took two yesterday, the usual dose is one a day, and so far, my tummy is very happy.

I'd tried zantac, prilosec, prevacid, pepcid and still have a drawer full of them. Not only did they not help, I thought they were making the pain worse.

My doc is such a sweetheart. It's over 200 bucks for a 30 day supply of Nexium and she gave me 50.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
glad you're feeling better. The group I play scrabble with has 3 people who complain of acid reflux. They've had lengthy discussions about medication. And all 3 of them agree that the only thing that really works is that purple little pill.... unfortunately, it also happens to be the most expensive one.

RebelliousRenee said...

And yeah.... my beloved Bruins are playing phenomenal hockey in the playoffs. I thought they'd breeze through the Toronto Maple Leafs and have a dog fight with the NY Rangers. Funny that it's been the exact opposite.

Although.... I shouldn't count my chickens before they hatch.... the Bruins haven't won the series yet. And any sports fan should tell you that anything can happen.

Carol said...

Renee, I've suffered reflux all my life and that's because of my poor dietary practices. This time I'm sure I developed a rip roaring ulcer from all the stress I endured for 5 months of other ailments. It was one thing after another. Nothing touched the pain, I couldn't eat and my belly was blown up like someone put a hose in me and pumped me up. I felt like an alien would bust out any minute. I lost about 12 pounds in 3 weeks. I couldn't do that over months, if I tried real hard.

I didn't think that Nexium would be that much better than what I was already taking and it's likely I just wasn't taking enough of the other stuff. Nexium came out when prilosec lost it's patent so I figured it wouldn't be superior to prilosec just a way to grab top dollar. My doc doesn't agree. She thinks it's better. It was free so I couldn't pass it up. I had already decided I would crank up my prilosec dose, like Jan is, when I got the Nexium. I hadn't done that before because I wanted to make sure it wasn't something seriously terminal before focusing on my stomach. We pretty much eliminated any and everything else it could be.

I'm not back to normal yet but I'm getting a lot closer.

Carol said...

Many people think that the more you pay for something, the better it will work. Same thing with clothes. I don't buy into to that philosophy.

jan said...

The prilosec (omeprezole) works for me. I have been taking it morning and night for about 5 weeks now and it has made a world of difference. Also, I seem to be able to eat most anything I want. No acid reflux. I get it at Costco for $15. for 42 tablets (it is on sale).

jan said...

I did not watch the Voice as our station carried the news of the aftermath of the tornado rather than the Voice. I just went online to find out who got eliminated.

jan said...

I have never tried Nexium but Carol if it works well for you, then I would consider staying with it.

Carol said...

Jan, only the first hour of the Voice was interrupted by that tornado special. It was just a recap of Monday. Except for some of the group songs done by the coaches and their team, it was just the results of the voting in the second hour. I linked two of the songs here. You can always catch those shows online. You can watch DWTS online if you miss it. Most Network shows are usually available the next day online. I missed Modern Family tonight so I'll catch it, the finale, tomorrow online.

Carol said...

I was out and drove home just a little while ago and there's a horrible termite swarm going on. They were bombing my truck. We have one every year about this time. I have all my lights out in the house because if I turn the lights on, they will find a way to get in. I had to take Maggie out and turn on the porch light. The flying termites were so thick that I could open my mouth. Never seen it this bad.

jan said...

Well both DWTS and Idol are over so noow have to find something else. Tonight we went out and sat on the porch and had a cup of tea. Very nice.

Carol, sorry about your termite invasion. Sometime soon we will get a moth invasion. They come down from the mountains when they don't have any water. Tonight was great though. No insects.

I did figure out what was causing my "waking up to headaches" in early morning. I was too hot. We had a down comforter on our bed. It felt good when I got in bed at night but through the night there was too much heat in there - especially with 2 people. After I took the comforter off and put on a light blanket - the headaches disappeared. I can read my nook and no problem so that wasn't it.

jan said...

I did tape Dr. Phil talking to the woman who disappeared for 11 years. Watched it earlier. It was most interesting. I know a lot of people were saying "how could she leave her kids." When she left, she was going through a divorce and was unable to get help with housing and did not know where to turn.

Carol said...

Jan, was that the woman they found in Florida?

RebelliousRenee said...

Jan... so glad you found the source of your headaches.
I run hot all the time at night. Even in the dead of winter, I will throw off the blanket in the middle of the night. I'm really glad it wasn't the nook.... reading is one of life's greatest pleasures, IMO.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol.... I don't think I've ever seen a termite. I don't know if they exist up here.... but I would think that they can be found anywhere.

I don't buy into the philosophy that the more you pay for something, the better it must be either. But my parents alway taught me to be careful of anything that's really cheap. They said if you have to buy it over and over again.... in the long run it's more expensive. So I try to get quality at a good price.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
go to TM and click on the link that HarborWoman(and Jack) posted on Dylan Ratigan's appearance on the Daily Show if you haven't seen it already. It's a scream... and Dylan was obviously a really good sport.

Carol said...

Thanks Renee for sharing that link from TM. I did pop over there but it was early and I hadn't watched the clip yet. I love Dylan and glad he is more fulfilled and doing something more meaningful. He does look happier. I don't watch much cable news anymore unless something is happening that I want to check on. I can usually get what I need to know in a hurry. Sometimes, I just look it up on Huff Post. I have watched some of the tornado coverage on CNN and the Weather Channel. I do watch the Weather Channel often because I'm interested in the weather.

jan said...

Carol, yes, it was the woman in Florida. She turned herself in. She said she was tired of being on the run. A very sad story.

jan said...

Termites are bad in OK. I don't think they are bad in NM. I guess it depends on the climate. I think they like humid weather.

Carol said...

Yes, there certainly are things where you get what you pay for. Hand tools is an example. Really cheap hand tools break or rust in a hurry. I'll sometimes buy some cheap ones if it's not something I will need for a long time or if it's not something I really need at all but want to have.

Now blue jeans are an example of it's not important to me to pay a bunch for them. I get Lee jeans at the factory outlet mall for half price.

Carol said...

Yes, I think those termites like warm humid weather. We didn't have a hard freeze this year and I've never seen them swarm like they were last night. It looked like a horror show.

jan said...

When I have lived in homes in OK, they have to be inspected for termites annually and sometimes treated which gets expensive.

RebelliousRenee said...

I don't watch much cable news anymore either. All they do is discuss the same story lines over and over. I usually put MSNBC on at 2pm to watch Tamron Hall's show. Yesterday I put on Animal Planet at that time and watched Swamp Wars. It was all about some big snake that went into someone's backyard pool near Miami.

At this point... I'd much rather watch that snake than the ones in D.C.

jan said...

Renee. Ditto on news shows.

I just finished reading this book (e-book) about a male nurse, Charles Cullen, up in New Jersey & Pennsylvania who was a serial killer. They don't know if he killed 40 or 400 patients. It was so upsetting. The name of the book is "The Good Nurse." The awful thing was how the hospitals just kept passing him around after they suspected what he was doing. He never was brought before a Board of Nursing. It chills your blood to realize what he was doing and most of his fellow nurses (women mostly) did not know what he was doing. It was another nurse (woman) who was the one who got him finally to confess.

Carol said...

Snake...politician...not much difference. No disrespect to snakes intended.

That Tom Colburn is still opening his mouth. He doesn't think any disaster relief is needed. He said they had enough money..no thanks to him. I hope his home peeps are listening. He also doesn't think they need to do anything to make the schools safer. If I lived in Oklahoma, and you couldn't pay me enough to do that with those tornadoes, my kids wouldn't go to a school that didn't have some way to shield them from tornadoes.

jan said...

I once had a male nurs student who scared me. He had a cold personality and I suspected he was stealing drugs in the hosp where we were scheduled. I could not prove it. I put him on probation at mid semester but he improved in his performance. The last clinical evening he left his patients and did not go back and report off after we had a brief clinical. I got him on abandonment and failed him clinically. This was a 2nd junior semester. Other teachers had come to me and wanted to fail him but didn't have the guts. He, of course, grieved the failure, but I had good evidence and the failure stood. I left the program the next year. The whole experience left a bad taste in my mouth. I did find out he was able to repeat the course and did graduate. I have always wondered what happened to him.

jan said...

brief clinical "conference."

Carol said...

HLN is still obsessing on Jodi Arias. I guess it's a real rating boost. You guys know how much I like to follow trials but that one started turning my stomach early but then again, my stomach was already done in for.

I think a channel called headline news might just have some headline news but when I check in there, they're still stuck on Jodi. Now they're drooling over killing her. I think people who watch HLN have turned into a bunch of ghouls with the HLN anchors as their ghoul masters. They won't be satisfied until they can see her die. The woman was found guilty and will spend the rest of her life in jail. She can't hurt anyone else anymore. I don't believe in the death penalty but if it has to be imposed, it should be reserved for serial killers.

Carol said...

I like Anderson Cooper. I think he is a neat guy with a lot of compassion.

Carol said...

Jan, I can't stand to even think about a nurse killing patients. I guess there's evil everywhere.

jan said...

The book I read is over 300 pages. I looked Charles Cullen up on line and wikopedia gives a summary of this book. It was 2 detectives and one nurse who managed to bring him to justice. If not for these 3 people, he might still be out there killing people. The last hosp where he worked, according to the book, tried to prevent the 2 detectives from gaining information they needed to convict him. Makes me really distrust hospital administrators.

jan said...

I too hate to think about nurses doing something like that but, hey, this guy is a sociopath. It can happen in any profession or occupation.

jan said...

Cullen managed to elude the police and others because he was a sociopath. He passed lie detector tests. He knew how to work the system. Other nurses liked him because he was so helpful to them. Beware the very helpful nurse who loves to work weekends and nights.

Carol said...

I would like to ask the LIM if the spirits she communicates with have ever very recently passed. There are lots of things that I would like to ask the LIM. I do follow the LIM on Twitter.

Carol said...

Jan, often hospitals just look out for their own interest.

Carol said...

Even though I wouldn't want to live in Oklahoma, the people there are amazing. I should have known, that's where you came from Jan. Isn't it?

RebelliousRenee said...

"often hospitals just look out for their own interest."

Carol.... I think that can be said for many professions...
think cops, teachers, politicians, and yes, I'm sure it happens with lawyers... and of course priests.

Methinks it's typical human behavior to not want to give one's profession a black eye.... just so much easier to pass the problem along.

Carol said...

Well Renee, I don't think we can say anything bad about weavers. Can't think of a single thing.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
I think we weavers know how to yank threads :)

Carol said...

Jan, I just saw your comment about the male student you had to fail. I also found that some faculty would act all tough in clinical but when push came to shove they were intimidated by the students. I thought I was pretty nice in clinical but when it came to failing a student that needed it, I would do it. It was a lot of work. One semester I had two students that had to fail. Both took me to the student/faculty grievance committee. I won. Then one, an older male student, took me to the University grade appeals committee. He even had a lawyer with him. I won again. That semester aged me pretty good. After that semester, I had a reputation that scared students to death. I almost needed a crash cart handy when I held my first clinical for the semester. After a while they realized I wasn't so bad. I certainly wasn't going to let a seriously incompetent nursing student out to take care of patients. I'd give up the job first.

Carol said...

Good one Renee.

Carol said...

Jodi Atias's jury couldn't agree on a punishment. Thank God. Now they will get a new jury to decide. How dumb. Why don't they just leave it at life in prison. I hope it bankrupts that dang state.

Carol said...

We were talking a while back about how NOT safe our bridges are. I just read where a section of a bridge near Seattle collapsed. Fortunately no one died even though a couple of vehicles went down with the bridge section.

jan said...

Yes, while we spent billions on wars that were pointless, our infrastructure is suffering.

jan said...

I agree, they could give Jodi life without parole and no appeals. That way she would avoid much publicity - which she seems to love.

jan said...

Sometimes, women who spend life in prison turn their lives around and are helping others. It can happen.

Carol said...

Jan, the woman was somewhat attractive, intelligent and a very good artist. She had no prior criminal or violent history. She met a man that she was obsessed with. There was enough evidence, IMO, to indicate that he was no saint even though he didn't deserve what happened to him. An expert with over 30 years experience in domestic violence evaluation and treatment testified that Jodi was a victim of DV from her victim. His family and friends denied it was possible but look at Ariel Castro. He held and raped those 3 young girls for 10 years and not a soul suspected it.

Jodi lied through her teeth the entire time and that hurt her. I really don't buy that her crime was premeditated because of how it all went down. I can't see someone spending 12 hours with a person, having sex, missing many opportunities to kill the victim and then going off and stabbing him over 27 times, slashing his throat and shooting him. Something doesn't compute there. I do think she has some severe mental problems.

That trial brought out a lot of evil in the public. That expert on DV has been terrorized and had death threats. Some witnesses for the defense have had death threats. What makes those people better than the defendant? Also, the lust for Jodi's death disturbs me. When people think there is a justification to kill another human being, I think they are no better than Jodi is, I'm sure she felt justified in her killing also.

Carol said...

I hope they one day do away with the death penalty.

Carol said...

My terrible belly ache is gone. I still can't eat much quantity of food at one time. I still feel some discomfort when eating at times but it's soooo much better.

Carol said...

Jan, I thought that some of that stimulus was to go toward fixing the infrastructure. I guess not. I'm scared to go over our main I-10 bridge here, opened in 1952. You probably remember that one. No one would survive a fall from that one. I'm sure it's on some list. Just looked and Wiki lists it as functional obsolete and structurally deficient. I guess they'll fix it when it falls down.

Carol said...

Yep, we like those wars because they make some big money for some.

I can certainly see why Dylan Ratigan got out of the ranting and raving about politics business. I'm sure he was making a good living doing it but it was taking as much or more from his soul. I always knew he was a good man. I'm glad we finally found him alive and well.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol.... glad to read that your belly is feeling better.
Now go get some of these chocolate eggs you love so much... you deserve it.

I don't blame Ratigan either. Although I was hoping he'd grab another show in the future.... it sure doesn't sound likes he interested anymore.... can't say that I blame him.

I'm really sick and tired of all the negativity surrounding politics. At the moment.... I can barely read TM and I'm taking a break from posting. This has happened to me in the past... but it's only lasted a day. So far I'm 3 days into these feelings.... and I don't feel any change coming on at all.

I'm having fun over here, though.

jan said...

Carol, I feel so relieved that your tummy is better. I think it is healthier not to eat so much food at one time. small frequent meals are so much more healthy. You might try adding one food at a time and wait a few days and see how your tummy responds.

jan said...

Renee, I wholeheartedly agree. I too am so tired of the negativity in politics. I can just take so much of it.

jan said...

I loved the little video of the woman who lost and then found her dog. I was struck by her just saying "oh" "oh" and another woman behind the camera just saying "the dog" "the dog". I find that when I am in a crisis I can only get out one word. We don't speak in complete sentences when something is so very emotional.

I think we all love seeing a happy outcome when there is such a tragedy (the woman finding her dog). The woman so reminded me of older women in OK and the accent and the way she said her words. I think everyone who saw that little video was happy for her. I wonder if she will get some invitations for any of the morning or nighttime shows?

Carol said...

Renee, I still have my stash of Easter eggs in the frig. They'll be good for a while and will now last longer. Already have.

I think that some of the others at TM feel the same way. There's talk about other things there. The peeps there are like family to most and it's important to keep in touch with the family.

jan said...

Carol, I do remember the I 10 bridge there. I would be a little scared now to go over it.

There is a bridge on I 40 in OK where a barge hit the pilings (I guess that is what you call them) and part of the bridge collapsed. It is one of those bridges where you cannot see all of it when approaching it. There were some cars that did not see that part of the bridge at the top was gone and they started over the bridge and went into the Ark river below. Finally a big truck realized what was happening and used his truck as a barrier so no other cars could approach the area. That happened in about 2001 or 2002, I think.

Carol said...

I appreciate that the media is focusing on many of the sweet and moving stories coming out of that horrible tragedy. They do our souls good to see them. Did you see the interview with the man who would have rathered his home get totally destroyed than the couple across the street who had a new baby? He was crying for them. I cried with that one also. That community is special.

jan said...

That bridge collapse happened near Webbers falls OK. May 26, 2002. There is a picture of it online. We crossed that bridge so many times so it was scary after that - each time we crossed it.

jan said...

Yes, so many heart-warming stories coming out of the tragedy.

jan said...

Just went over to TM to see what is the topic of conversation today. It was worth the effort. Heard 3 dog night singing "I never went to heaven, but I've been to Oklahoma." have not heard that in years but even better I heard Cheryl Crow and Willie Nelson sing "Crazy." That was great. Love Willie and Cheryl too.

jan said...

Had to check it out on Google first, but Willie Nelson wrote the song "Crazy" in 1961. Of course, Patsy Cline made it popular.

jan said...

Enjoying my day off immensely. I think we are going to see "The Great Gatsby" later this afternoon. Hope its good.

RebelliousRenee said...

Carol...
I'll go back to posting over at TM eventually... I just need a break right now.

Jan... I've heard a lot of criticism of Gatsby.... but it's mostly from film critics. I know at least a half dozen people that have seen it.... and they really liked it.

Please give us your review after you've seen it.

Carol said...

They are a musical group over there at TM. That's probably what keeps them sane.

jan said...

Renee, we decided to see Gatsby another day/night this weekend. I have a bit of a headache. Movies do not go well with even a bit of a headache. I sure will give my review when we go.

jan said...

We are getting close to 200 comments. I hate to see Renee's beautiful pics leave. Can they be re-posted?

RebelliousRenee said...

NEW POST!