admin – Page 34 – This Old House 2

How to break the cycle

…I don’t have a darn clue.

I’ve been struggling with the same issue for years now. Because of the nature of the physical work of shoveling shit for 35 years… and the nature of bending over a computer keyboard on and off for various work related stuff over the years… I’ve got arthritis in my neck and muscles spasms in the neck/shoulder area that occasionally FLARE.

Now throw in High Blood Pressure. And medicine sensitivities galore.

Here’s why that’s aggravating as hell – I hate BP meds, they make me feel like a slug and aren’t really effective. I’ve tried three so far – bleh. If I lose 10-15 lbs, which is about what I’ve gained over the years that I shouldn’t have… the numbers might come down some. So I start doing some intensive treadmill walking/hiking and a few Yoga routines. Which throws my neck and shoulders into a tizzy. Which causes pain, which spikes the blood pressure.

Now throw in Anxiety… because when I feel like crap, that factors in too. The muscle relaxants that are prescribed when the pain gets real bad make me feel like a zombie. Anti inflammatories make me stomach sick. The Anxiety spirals, the muscles spasm more…

and still there is shit to shovel and documents to edit.

I’m not getting rid of the horses/chickens/rabbits. I’m not quitting my day job. I really need to keep up exercise regimen for health and well being.

So I ice my neck. I go to Physical Therapy. I try to eat almost nothing to lose that 10-15 lbs, and it gets somewhere and then I fall back.

Round and round it goes, when she’ll figure out what works for good, no one knows. Or maybe I just don’t want to accept it.

Anyway… have you found yourself in a negative life cycle that you’d love to resolve? Did you manage to do so? What worked for you, do tell…

Unbroken

Have you seen the movie yet?

Amazing.. amazing true story. – 2014 , produced and directed by Angelina Jolie, based on the 2010 non-fiction book by Laura Hillenbrand. The film revolves around the life of USA Olympian Louis “Louie” Zamperini, portrayed by Jack O’Connell. Zamperini survived in a raft for 47 days after his bomber was downed in World War II, then was sent to a series of Japanese prison camps where he sustained unfathomable torture but showed a resilience I can’t even describe.. except to say I was in awe and in tears often throughout the movie. The icing on the cake is knowing Zamperini went on to marry his sweetheart, raise two children, and even ran with the Olympic torch IN JAPAN at the age of 81. He recently passed in July of 2014 at the age of 97.

Amazing.

Back in the day, I used to think of Angelina as not much more than a gorgeous but whacked young actress who was going to tip over the edge for certain one of these days. Of course she has always been my husbands ultimate fantasy figure.

In recent years, however, I have a whole new respect for her. She has talent behind the cameras, as evidenced in producing and directing this movie. She came to know this incredible man personally, and wanted to portray his journey as authentically as possible. I believe she did just that. Angie also shows a generosity and soul so many other celebrities do not possess. And right here I admit.. way back when it was the -thing- I was Team Aniston all the way.

Only thing?..Sometimes I just want to throw her a cheeseburger, ya know?

Shown below….. with the authentic Louie.

Bravo, Angelina Jolie, and Louie – I sure hope there is a reward at the end of this life.. if anyone deserves it, you most definitely deserve it.

Where have I been!!???…

Busy, but in a good way. In my new old position as editor of our local publication, (because our town is so small we don’t have an actual newspaper) .. I am feeling creative again and contributing to the community, hopefully in a good way. I love that I can work at home, too. Right now the dogs are laying all around me and I’ve got a candle burning as the snow begins to fly once again. Oh, did I really just say that?… Indeed….

We celebrated the big FIVE OH quietly with family – because of my hearing impairment, big noisy parties and the conversations they require are hard to navigate. I asked only one thing… please, no big party. I had a lovely day and I can honestly tell you I feel the number is a present to be opened, not a thing to begrudge. Age is a privilege, a gift not all receive. I’ll take it open handed and embrace each year as it comes, wrinkles and all.

Made this recipe the other night and it was a huge hit. To the arteries, not just the taste buds. But hey, sometimes you just gotta do what you gotta do and hope for the best.

Dad’s Swedish Meatballs – Taste of Home Recipe

Ingredients

1 egg, lightly beaten
1/2 cup milk
1 cup soft bread crumbs
1/2 cup finely chopped onion
1 teaspoon salt
1/4 teaspoon ground nutmeg
1/4 teaspoon pepper
1 pound ground beef
1/2 pound ground pork
1/4 cup butter, cubed
DILL CREAM SAUCE:
2 tablespoons all-purpose flour
1 cup heavy whipping cream
1 cup beef broth
1 teaspoon salt
1/2 teaspoon dill seed

Directions

In a large bowl, combine the first seven ingredients. Crumble beef and pork over mixture and mix well. Shape into 1-1/2-in. balls. In a large skillet, cook meatballs in butter in batches until a thermometer reads 160°. Remove and keep warm.
In a small bowl, combine the sauce ingredients until blended. Stir into skillet. Bring to a boil; cook and stir for 2 minutes or until thickened. Serve with meatballs. Yield: 6 servings.

Dog Rescue Dilemna

Dog rescue is a very rewarding experience. I am amazed and humbled by the resilient, forgiving nature of dogs who have been abused, tortured, starved, abandoned, turned in by families they thought were their own. The feeling you get when you see a dog thrive in it’s new home, truly enjoying a good life because of your efforts is just priceless.

Dog rescue can also be very frustrating. Example – We are a Connecticut group. We’d love to help Connecticut Dogs. There are plenty in our pounds, and while the “kill” rate isn’t as high as down south, it’s still a possibility in some of our shelters. So we reach out to CT pounds and ask if they’d like to participate in our adoption events… at no cost to them. They just have to show up with their dog!… no fee, they keep whatever their adoption fee is. Our adoption rate at events is fantastic, so you’d think it’s a no-brainer, right?

And yet, very few are willing to come. Reason? There are several …. no one at the pound willing to spend their day volunteering to bring the dog to the event. Apparently the towns or state won’t pay employees to bring a dog to a Saturday event. Hey.. we are ALL VOLUNTEER… is there really no one who is willing to help? And.. after hearing this – we’ve offered to bring the dogs ourselves. To which we hear.. oh, liability, so.. no. OR.. they don’t like that we also help southern dogs find homes. Personally, we don’t believe in borders. A dog in need is a dog in need, and down south the situation is horrible. Many many dogs die daily. Now if we could get more Connecticut pounds to participate? We’d probably become an ALL Connecticut adoption event group. Can’t have one without cooperation from the other.

Sad deal.

Anyway.. here are a few happy faces coming to our next mini adoption event to be held at Pet Valu in Guilford, CT – If you have a Pet Valu near you, support them. What an awesome organization. They do not sell animals in their store.. they DO NOT SUPPORT PUPPY MILLS. They DO support shelter dogs by letting us hold fundraisers in their stores,.. and letting us hold mini adoption events as well. It’s a beautiful thing.

THANK YOU PET VALU CORPORATION. You totally ROCK!

We’ve got a mini adoption event this coming Saturday at Pet value, flyer below..

And a fundraiser in April too!…

If you’re local, come meet the pups.. or have your pets picture taken with the Easter Bunny – Just $5. and all proceeds go to Homeward Bound CT. Visit our website for more information…

www.homewardboundadoptionevents.jimdo.com or like us on FB – Homeward Bound CT

Aging does have advantages

….And I’m not referring to all that crap the AARP has started sending my husband and I. Do they keep a record somewhere of just exactly when each citizen in the US is going to turn 50 so they can get you to jump on their bandwagon and take advantage of all that they have to SELL you ASAP? Uncanny how all of a sudden, there it is, in your mailbox, exactly when they think you should start paying attention to their stuff.

What I’ve learned in my first 50 years (hoping for a second 50 but we all know every day is a gift):

It’s true – LIFE IS SO VERY SHORT. And you don’t really feel or understand that until you’ve lived it for a while. Time does indeed speed up as we go along. Remember how ENDLESS summers felt when you were 8 or 9 years old? It stretched on forever. Not anymore.. it’s a blip. If you blink three times, you might miss it. Looking at the history of the World, our life span is just a period at the end of a sentence in a long essay. I have indeed learned to appreciate every.single.day.

THIS, TOO, SHALL PASS. Whatever it is that has you crazy at any particular time, you won’t always feel that way. It won’t always BE that way. Here’s a biggie…some things you have power to change, some things you don’t. Regardless, don’t waste too much energy in “the craze”… because it isn’t here forever and neither are you. Let it go, accept, move forward. (If my family is reading this right now there might be a snort or two.. .just hush – it’s a work in progress. )

TRULY, DEEPLY, AND ABSOLUTELY, LIKE YOURSELF. I don’t say “love” here, because that doesn’t come easy to a lot of us, so lets be realistic and start with LIKE. When I was young, oh I had my opinions and my ideas and desires on what I wanted my life to look like and who I wanted to be. But I also didn’t have a lot of faith in myself – that old self-esteem issue – and caved to what others wanted me to be. I didn’t often -follow my bliss-, nurture my creative side, pursue what I was capable of accomplishing, I didn’t believe in ME. First on the agenda as I have matured has been to be true to myself, my beliefs, accept my shortcomings, admit and correct them where needed without beating myself up – and nourish creativity. I also don’t give a flying F if someone just doesn’t like me for whatever their reason. Tell me – Why is it so important, especially for women, that we are -liked-. It is, though, isn’t it. We want to nurture, protect and take care of… and we want to be liked. It all starts from within, not outside sources. Took a long time for me to figure that one out.

This is my 50th birthday month. I’m very OK with that, grateful ,absolutely. I can say without a tinge of cringe.. that I love who I have become. Perfect? Heck no. But good enough for me. There aren’t a whole lot of pictures of me when I was a younger person… and those that were taken tell the story of someone who does not feel comfortable in her own skin. Look for yourself…

Graduation celebration when the world was indeed my oyster, but I didn’t know it, afraid to open it! I rarely smiled big back then, because I didn’t trust to be that happy in the moment.

Taken two days ago…

I’m more than OK with 50. I finally like me a lot, wouldn’t want to be someone else, am proud of what I’m accomplishing, accepting where I fall short, and am trying where I can to leave this world a better place where I am able to touch it. While I’m not jumping for joy over the hearing loss, the wrinkles and dry skin and grey hairs that greet me in the morning, I do like what I see,… I know it’s a privilege. ….and I smile… big.

I saw this mug in a store last week and bought one for my daughter and one for myself. Love the saying.. yes, this.

As far back as I can remember

…. we have not had this much snow and cold temps for such an extended period of time. My poor guys have been plowing and shoveling and salting and sanding for what seems like eons. There is no place to put the new snow that is currently blanketing our blanket of snow. Parking lots in this area look like snow fortresses, the banks are now so high.

Do any of you remember Bob Ross? The afro sporting happy God Bless fella who used to have a painting show on TV – back in the day-? I loved him.. .. he could whip up glorious paintings in 20 minutes where if you had all the “stuff”, you could follow along and create something not too horribly awful…. and he was always always upbeat, happy, wishing you well.

This picture has been circulating FB and it has me laughing…

So today as I sit here typing on my NEW COMPUTER THAT IS INDEED COMPATIBLE WITH ADOBE CLOUD and finally I am all set and ready to go with no more bullsh*t chats with Adobe techs in India….. I am also looking out over snow covered everything, and it’s still coming down from the skies.

The dogs have been doing a lot of this…

And I have been dragging out the spring decorations because ENOUGH IS ENOUGH.

These beautiful owls were intended as Tree ornaments, but I love them so much I found them

a permanent home perched in the little trees on either side of my Marthas Vineyard Blue Moon.

Cadbury Eggs = CRACK, in case you weren’t aware.

As always, thanks for stopping by and I hope you all have a good day.

Still looking for the silver lining….

There is major suckitude in the Adobe world, let me tell you a little something.

So…. I have taken back an old position as editor of a local publication, right? Let me be clear that I am thrilled to do so, grateful for the opportunity, thankful that others had faith in me to do it justice. BUT.. I haven’t done this for the past 10 years. * Things have changed.

For one thing, I can’t use Pagemaker, my long lost friend, to put the publication together anymore. Actually when you say that word to any tech store person, they laugh. Apparently, it’s a dinosaur. Extinct. Doesn’t matter, though!… Because I am no longer actually putting the publication together, so to speak, I’m just doing the editorial and -helping- to assemble!

So I’m saying to my little self – AWESOME NEWS!…

Except… there were still glitches. Apparently, the whole world uses ADOBE products now for this sort of thing and a host of other -things- that I might or might not have a use for. Apparently I have been living under a rock. Have you heard of Adobe Cloud? It encompasses a whole lot of capability – Indesign, Photoshop, ILlustrator, lightroom, Acrobat Pro… and there… right there… was were I came across THE RUB.

While in the process of learning the ropes with my new old job, I discovered I would need to get up to speed with those Adobe products in order to share work with my partner in our little publication. So I downloaded Adobe Cloud, which I will pay $30. per month for, because you can no longer just go to Staples and buy the CD… Nooooo… it’s a monthly charge thing that you download from a site! The Adobe site in this case. Yep, they figured out how to make more money off us. Anyway. I download it, right? And I start rummaging around in the Cloud on my computer. One of the key components in my job is the use of Acrobat Pro. It is supposed to come with the Cloud package. For some reason, it wasn’t there. *sigh.

How do you get in contact with Adobe for f*ck ups? Well, you can take your chances in the forums or search 250,000 help articles which they ask you to do ten times before they will actually connect you to a CHAT session with an Adobe tech.

How do I make a long story short here.

First tech:…two and a half hours of all kinds of diagnostics, not getting anywhere, only to have the internet connection cut off and chat session end. (really?)….

Before the disconnect, however…after a lengthy aggravating diagnostic check… We finally figured out one small thing and I said..

well, at least we cleared that up, “D”.. Need a Cigarette? ….

To which “D” replied.. We do not smoke here.

I don’t either, D. It was just a joke.

“D” says… Oh, that is good humor.

What country do you reside in, D?….

Bangalore, India.

Ok D, I’ll quit the American Humor.

*SIGH.

five minutes later, we’re disconnected.

Second tech:… two hours… all kinds of diagnostics, the same as tech one… still can’t figure out what the issue is. I’m red in the face at the end of this chat… which ends AGAIN… by internet disconnect. (Swearing profusely at this point).

Third tech a day later:…. I explain all that has come before this and he apologizes profusely for the inconvenience and he “understands my concern”. ( I don’t really think so ) He explains there are often disconnects due to the internet connection being dicey. Coming all the way from F-ing India, I am not surprised. But we go about the same damned dance one more time, and yet, at the end of another two hour struggle we have still gotten nowhere.

Only.. THIS time.. this tech has the brains to say..

May I ask you.. what Operating System are you using?…

Vista.

OH!.. he exclaims with just a little too much of an underscore of HAPPINESS!…. We can’t help you! Acrobat Pro is not compatible with Vista! You’ll need to contact Microsoft. Is there anything else I can help you with today?

Can you pass a Marguerita through that screen and coat the rim with Xanax? If not, there’s nothing more you can help me with today.

Internet Disconnect.

So where do I go from here? Apparently I have to upgrade my operating system in order to get the tools I’ve already paid for and downloaded to my computer. And apparently that would be costly and a royal pain in the a&&. Especially because I have an older computer. So.. this week I’m getting a new computer that has an OS that is compatible with the components I need to utilize in my new old position. THEN, I will need to go back into the black hole that is ADOBE TECH SUPPORT and hope the first tech I talk to can figure out how to install Adobe Cloud onto my NEW COMPATIBLE COMPUTER SYSTEM so that I can get back to work. And not charge me twice for it. What are the odds of that happening without a DISCONNECT-

Do you know why Adobe sucks? They have a monopoly on the design/publishing/photoshop/etc world. There is no other option if you’re in this business. How is that legal? Everyone and their brother and third cousin twice removed plus their dogs, parrot and pet skunk uses Adobe. So, if you want to be compatible with everyone else? You need the Cloud.

And you know what also sucks? That they hire all that tech help overseas. I know plenty of techies looking for a decent job right here in the states. I have nothing against the good people of India… but we have good people right here that need the jobs to stay .. right here. That’s the biggest suckitude in all of this.

I’ll keep you posted.. next time.. from my expensive new computer, hopefully equipped compatibly.

What Not To Wear After Age 50

I’m reposting this because it’s pretty awesome. Except I like Holiday theme clothes sometimes. I’ll also be wearing jeans, t-shirts and keds till I’m no longer. Just sayin.
_________________________________________________________________________________What Not To Wear After Age 50 by Michelle Combs, Huff Post Blogger

Google ‘what not to wear after age 50’ and you will have your pick of thousands of articles telling you what looks terrible on your old ass body.

I want to point out to the writer who wrote the ‘no-no’ article, you need to remember you are writing for over 50 women, not preschoolers. I don’t think I’ve said ‘no-no’ since my youngest was a toddler.

We could spend hours studying the clothes we shouldn’t wear and the slang we shouldn’t use and the makeup techniques we need to retire.

Here’s me, weighing in on this topic.

You are over 50 for fuck’s sake. Wear whatever you want. If you’ve made it to 50 and still need to consult articles on how to dress appropriately then you are so missing out on one of the best things about being over 50. One of the best things about getting older is realizing that we don’t have to spend our energy worrying what other people think and we get to be comfortable in our own skin with our own freak flags.

Still, there are a few things that women over 50 really shouldn’t wear:

1. The weight of the world.
When you wear the weight of the world on your shoulders, you age. If you like the feel of the world’s weight and don’t want to give it up, then try scaling back a bit. Perhaps just wear the weight of a few of the smaller continents. For instance, I am only wearing the weight of Australia and a made up country called ‘Michelloponia’. I think it they have a slimming effect.

2. Shame and regret.
So few people can carry this look off. Most of us just end up looking haunted or like we were forced to eat liver and onions. Shame and regret are especially hard to wear after fifty. Wearing shame and regret past fifty is one of those things that make your eyes all red and runny looking. The downward spiral just snowballs from there. Once the eyes get old lady looking, then you have to re-evaluate the wisdom of black eye liner. I say give up wearing shame and regret and fuck giving up on black eye liner.

3. Rose-colored glasses.
Oh, sweetheart, you know who you are. Those glasses do nothing for you. Not only do they make you look like you’ve been smoking weed for days, they also keep you from examining life and your surroundings realistically. Yes, reality sucks, but by the time we hit fifty, we need to suck it up, take those glasses off and dick punch reality into submission. Or just get some really big dark sunglasses instead. They cover all manner of sins.

4. Stiff upper lip.
There is a time and a place for the stiff upper lip, but damn, it can’t be worn all the time. Too much stiff upper lip causes those funky vertical lines between your upper lip and your nose holes. We don’t always have to be stoic. I’m not suggesting that you wear your heart on your sleeve, but that is a much softer look than wearing a stiff upper lip.

5. Too many hats.
Personally, I can’t pull off wearing one hat, much less many hats. I don’t have a hat head. My hair poofs out and my ears look like car doors when I wear a hat. Wearing too many hats just exacerbates these issues. When you wear too many hats, it’s easy to forget which hat you’re wearing. For instance, are you wearing the “no nonsense corporate” hat when you meant to wear your “quirky and kicked back” hat? We’re not getting any younger, you know. Sooner or later you’re going to accidentally wear your court jester hat to the gynecologist and then where will you be? I’ll tell you where you’ll be. You’ll be in an undignified position and wearing a stupid hat is where you’ll be.

6. Resting bitch face.
Hahahahaha. Just kidding. Wear that one all you want. Although, it wouldn’t hurt if every once in a while, you had a welcoming and kind look on your face. At least that’s what I hear from other people.

There isn’t anything wrong with getting advice about updating your look or what to wear, but we are just inundated with that shit, aren’t we?

Who says what is appropriate? From where I sit, it seems ‘appropriate’ changes based on geography, social status, income and size. After a while, the advice becomes a confusing blur. I think I’ll just keep wearing my Keds and jeans and black tee shirts.

Oh, I do have one real tip. Stop wearing holiday theme clothes. Seriously.

_________________________________________________

Zero

Zip. Zee-Row. -0-

I’m about to head out into the arctic circle to chip away ice buckets and feed and clean stalls and curse a few times for good measure. I don’t remember a winter clutching tightly to such low temps and snow cover. It’s getting old.

The dogs yesterday.. helping me work in my office…

Did you catch Saturday Night Live’s 40th Anniversary Special last night? Loved it. So many greats showed up to be a part of it…. and oh, how we’ve all AGED.

Anyway… I spent a few minutes on Pinterest this morning to get my head out of the mope session I was having over this bitter cold dilemna we’ve got right outside the door. Are you a Pinterest person? I don’t visit often because it can be an awful time suck and I spend too much time on the computer as it is, but there are so many inspirational images, decorating, travel and recipes ideas. Here are just a few i have on my board…

I love this house.. on a lake.. perfect.

Oh, to be here right now….

Can you IMAGINE?….. although I can see my dogs flying face first into those glass walls at the first sign of a squirrel.

Lovely bathroom…

Whimsical dress….

Who wouldn’t be comfortable here….

I’ve often thought I was a mermaid in another life.

It’s a new day, all. Stay warm if you’re living in this snowglobe, enjoy the sunshine if you’re someplace we’re NOT…. and make it a good one.

The one where she can’t come up with a post title….

.. because I’ve taken back an old editorial job where I’m constantly trying to come up with better, easier, more creative ways to say something. Not that I’m particularly good at it!

We’ve got more snow on the horizon… feels like we’re living in a perpetual snow globe. There is a very small deck outside my kitchen sliders that has three steps down to the backyard and gardens. Sometimes on a cold winter day if the sun is shining bright, I can lay out on that little deck comfortably in a t shirt and jeans and soak up the warmth and light. The wood decking absorbs the heat from the sun and it feels glorious against my sore back muscles.

Currently…the snow is inches ABOVE the lip of the deck… that just ain’t right.

Despite the snow and cold temps, we’ve also had some glorious sunsets. This came straight from my iPhone… the sky was that amazing.

We had some fun with good friends on Sunday.. took a ride to the far corners of the State to see a very old house that needs restoration. What a glorious place.. I can’t share pictures with you at this point but I will when it’s OK to do so. You’ll fall in love, just as we have.