Welcome to GameBoomers Break Room #4

Come one, come all, share your daily thoughts, conversational chit-chat, maybe a joke or two and all the little things that really don't need its own thread.

There are plenty of seats available, so don't be shy and come chat!

View the previous thread here and we can start where we left off!

Happy chatting!

A very good Sunday morning one and all: mine starts with a strong coffee and freshly baked croissants with blackcurrant and sloe gin jam. After that a bit of puzzling and/or gaming before garden tasks await...

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. I'm waiting for it to get cool enough to do some gardening. Not much likes our heat and humidity in the summer, that includes me.

Good morning, with all the bad weather coming. I hope everyone can stay safe.

Good morning everyone

Hey Connie, I believe pineapples are the only things that enjoy the heat and humidity down there

Hey Lex, you and me both kick starting the day with bold coffee ... I brought a pot of High Voltage coffee this morning for everyone

I agree Winfrey ... bad weather is not fun ... our thoughts and prayers go out to those in Ida's path

Happy Sunday everyone

Yes. My thoughts are also with those of you who might be affected by the coming storm .... Hope you all stay safe !!!! 😍

just thought i would stop in and say hello. don't post much any more but i do come in to see what everyone has been up to and what not

my10rugrats, good morning.

A good strong hi-test coffee or two for me.

Out of the blue the Home care nurse showed up at our door this morning to give my husband his second COVID shot, so that's a worry out of the way. I guess the only good thing that came out of his fractured hip is that I was able to schedule his vaccinations without his being able to run away, given his extreme needle phobia.

Bit wet today, some "motregen" as we call it. Yesterday was better and my wife and I went on a bike ride near Uithoorn. Lovely countryside and had a pancake at one of the Forts of the Stelling van Amsterdam.
My vacation is over tomorrow

Uithoorn looks lovely (on Google)!

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. i wish i could.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. My prayers for those affected by Ida.

Hagatha, a bone graft? Good grief! Does that mean full oral surgery with anesthesia? I've heard of bone grafts; but not in the mouth.

Had a little scare last night. After my dog had his bedtime snack, as he moved to return to his bed, his back legs got wobbly. He didn't fall down but was definitely unsure of what to do. I encouraged him to take it slow. He was able to walk the few feet to his bed. I had a hard time falling asleep. Was afraid he wouldn't be able to walk this morning. But he was ok enough to try to get me out of bed at 5 am. I have hard wood floors, so I can hear his nails when be paces back and forth between my bed and his. He gets the least exercise on Sundays, and I think that's affecting him now. He moves a little slower and, at time, is wobbly but still shows signs of being happy and enjoying people's attention.

My thoughts go out to those of you in areas with fires and floods.

same thiing.

Butterflybabe, bone grafts in the mouth are quite common. I've already had four as a consequence of periodontal work about 15 years ago -- I had four gum grafts, too, which is really unpleasant. The bone grafts are nothing in comparison. The extra bone grows into the existing bone to provide a solid base for the implanted tooth.

The worst part about this surgery for me is that I can't eat or drink anything before the surgery, which is at noon, so I'll be cranky.

And yes, it will require a general anesthetic.

My husband had a bone graft so they could put in a implant. And they used cadaver bone!

They use a synthetic compound here a lot of the time. In my first bone grafts 15 years ago, they used a mixture of bone from another part of my jaw and cow bone, I think. It wasn't nearly as bad as it sounds -- the gum grafts were much worse.

Anyway, I'll be glad to have the gap filled up. As I said, you can't see that a tooth is missing, but it makes eating on that side impossible.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Mani/Pedi today, then lunch out with a friend.

They gave my husband a choice of what kind of bone to use... since the whole procedure was going to cost $4,000 already, he picked the cheaper one! They wanted to do 3 more, but he said no, this one would be good enough to let his use a bridge for eating. He had such terrible dental care his whole life until we got married 21 years ago and I sent him to a proper dentist.

My dentist is sending me to a specialist on Thursday. I have an area that is missing bone and they want to see what needs to be done.... sounds like it might be a bone transplant...

Winfrey, It's been successful in my case. I have periodontal disease inherited from my mother's side, and the bone and gum grafting have kept all of my teeth but the one in decent shape. Otherwise, I'd have lost a few back molars.

Hagatha, I use special toothpaste, only available thru my dentist, because my gums are so short, the tops of roots of my teeth show. Not obvious to most people. But when an area of gum shrinks, I get gum graft. I've had several of them over the years. As you said they are uncomfortable, because the skin comes from the roof of the mouth. Early ones were hardest because of that. Last couple more tolerable due to a liquid bandage applied to the roof making that spot less painful. If have numerous surgeries requiring anesthesia, so I feel for you. Always anxious to get knocked out so I'll wake up and all I have to do is heal.

Drac, good for you for getting your husband to a dentist!

I don't think a lot of people realize how important dental care is. My sister's father-in-law actually died from dental poisoning. Good looking guy until he smiled. Had like 10 teeth left in his mouth. A friend of mine from Poland recently told me she'd not been to a dentist for a long time. Her last visit was as a child when the Polish dentist did not use novacaine for a filling; and she never forgot that experience. I'm trying to get her to my dentist. Assuring her that US dentists typically do not let a patient suffer like that.

Good afternoon everyone

I brought an earthy Sumatran blend this afternoon to the Break Room for one and all ... enjoy!

Connie, I'm going to grab a bagel on the go ... enjoy yourself this afternoon

Have a wonderful afternoon butterflybabe, hagatha, Winfrey and Draclvr.

Heart health is also directly related to dental health. I planning on going to my grave with all my own teeth, so I take care of them!

Soot, I'll have some of that Sumatran, since I had no coffee this morning and have been dreaming about having a cup all day.

I was fortunate to have a very good periodontist look after me back in the day, while I was working and the had the cash to get the best treatments available. My long-time dentist was an old guy who really hadn't kept up with the latest techniques. When he retired and his son took over the practice, the first thing he did was send me off to see the periodontist, who had been in his cohort in dental school.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke tonight with friends.

Good morning all.

I woke up at 3 am, and remembered that the antibiotic I was given for my surgery is of the class that gives me insomnia -- could be a sleepy week. But it looks like a nice day, so I can just read on the deck with my cat in my lap.

Sounds like the perfect day, hagatha. I'm still recovering from our trip up to NW Iowa to visit my family for the first time in 3 1/2 years last weekend! It's a 10 hour drive each way. We had a great time reconnecting with family. I have a boatload of great nieces and nephews who have grown up SO much! Everyone came to my sister's house Saturday night and we went through the worst hail storm any of us had ever experienced - even up there where severe weather is common! Tornados on the ground on both sides of us less than a mile away, winds gusting to 80 mph and hail the size of baseballs and softballs. My sister's garage is huge and we scrambled to move tables so we could get as many vehicles inside as possible. Got 5 of them inside just as it hit. Two older cars we couldn't get in are toast... broken windshields, glass inside, mirrors torn off, bodies destroyed. It was pretty epic! But in between storms, we managed to eat and still have a good time.

Drac that's all I can say! Glad you had family fun despite it all.

So that's what happens when family gets together .

Not normally, oldbroad!! Trust me, it's Iowa... the food and beer was consumed between the storms!

same thing.

Holy cow, Drac! What an memorable trip! Glad you are all ok!

Oldbroad

hagatha, hope you can find some sleep tonight!

That was some storm!

BrownEyedTigre, I'll just take a sleeping pill if I can't sleep tonight. No sense in suffering if I don't have to.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Drac .

Good morning everyone

I brought a 'Malta' blend dark roast coffee this morning ... from Italy ... quite the treat I've heard

Oh my goodness Drac ... wow, brings back memories from the big storms with hail I saw as a kid in Montana!!

Have a wonderful day!!

It's very lovely. Away from the big city and still very close to Amsterdam.

I have been living in Hillegom since just before 2019 and every spring the whole countryside is filled with flower bulb fields. Daffodils, hyacinths, tulips in all kinds of colors.
Our neighboring town has one of the biggest flower exhibitions in the world: The Keukenhof. Still haven't been able to visit there unfortunately.

Maybe next year Jarkeld.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Jarkeld, I would love to see the fields of bulbs. Most bulbs like those won't grow in Florida. It doesn't get cold enough to break dormancy here.

Good morning everyone

I agree Connie ... the fields of blooming flowers in the Netherlands look wonderful ... I'll bet it's heavenly in person ... we used to have a flower festival in Lompoc California which was incredible ... I'll grab a Danish to take back to the office with me this morning ..

I brought a pot of an earthy blend of Sumatra coffee this morning and a cooler filled with bottled Fiji water [330ml, 500ml and 1L] for the Break Room

Have a great T.G.I.F. day everyone

The break room is nicely stocked with goodies this morning!

Where I'm from in NW Iowa, we have several towns that almost exclusively Dutch. Orange City has a Tulip Festival every year and it's almost more color and beauty than your eyes can take in! They have a big parade and our marching band would go there to participate.

sports and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping is on the agenda today. Working the kitchen for our dinner at the Eagles tonight, Trivia to follow.

A good week-end to you all.

My fireman son is now 46 year old. Boy that time past rapidely.

The temp is good to do some work in the flowers beds and possibly to wash some windows.

If not, a good walk and reading could be the best thing to do.

Take care.



l4l, I'm also waiting for the next book of Gamache.

Good afternoon everybody

Hope your weekend is unfolding according to plan ... chores and projects are keeping me busy

I brought a pot of Vanilla Sumatra with me this afternoon ... vanilla goes great with a bold coffee

Have a wonderful Saturday

Chief, Happy Birthday to your son! Your plans for the day sound wonderful, except for the window washing part. I do love freshly cleaned windows, but am not fond of washing them.

I'm just finishing in the kitchen. I've been doing prep work for the coming week, but now am down for the night. Hope you all have had a wonderful day.

Good Morning Connie, Chief, family, soot, L4L and everyone. Fresh brewed strong Sumatra coffee and breakfast blend tea are ready to enjoy with Connie's delicious break room goodies. Hope you all are enjoying your weekend. Lots of crazy weather lately, but the past few days have been cool Fall like days here...great for walking.

Have a Happy Day.

Gerry

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning, then we shall see how the rest of the day unfolds. Still hot, hot, hot here, I did put out my fall decorations anyway.

Beautiful day here. Going to the annual family BBQ at hubby's sister's clubhouse down on the Bourbeuse River. BBQ ribs and tons of side dishes that everyone brings. I'm taking sweet corn from the garden that we froze earlier this summer.

Beautiful day here too Draclvr & Connie ... I cooked two racks of baby back ribs this morning and will cook two more racks tomorrow and then 'BBQ' the four of them tomorrow afternoon for our Labor Day Feast

I brought a pot of Cafédirect coffee to enjoy this afternoon in the Break Room.

Have a wonderful Sunday everyone

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

Family, are all those shows on on Sundays too?

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today.

Good morning everyone!

I brought a pot of Sumatra Reserve today for the break room

Happy labor day y'all

Wow, last week when we were planning what to have for Labor Day, the weather forecast was beautiful and dry. It was hot, humid, and dry 30 minutes ago. It is now raining elephants and mammoths out there

Hope your day is going well

same thing.

So, L4L/soot - were you able to BBQ those ribs?

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good afternoon everybody. It's getting dark and scary looking outside here. I may have to shut down my computer .

Bright, sunny and hot here, oldbroad!

In the Netherlands it's been too warm and sunny today. 27C+
Inside at work the temperature hit at least 24.5. Poor ventilation/cooling combined with a running flow cytometer with 3 lasers.

Good afternoon ya'll

It's hot, humid, but we have blue skies and bright sun. Most likely will get a shower or 2 in a bit.

I have had one of "those" days when lots of little things have been frustrating, so am just breathing deeply, petting the dog, and muttering, "this too shall pass, this too shall pass" Must be time to get lost in a good book.

I hope you all are having a most wonderful day!

I assume that is warmer that you are used to there, Jarkeld? We would consider that balmy here!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

same thing and cooking class, we are making shrimp fettuccine, but use linguine noodles instead, and a jar of alfredo sauce.

Mmmm, sounds wonderful Family ... have fun

Good morning Connie

I brought my Keurig to the Break Room this morning and a box of Crazy Cups, flavored coffee single serve variety sampler ... enjoy!

Hump Day 🐪

That sounds yummy, family. We love chicken alfredo because hubby is allergic to shrimp.

Looking for some of that dark Sumatra roast - just don't like flavored coffee!

Good morning and happy Wednesday! I hope you are all having a wonderful day!

Raining and muggy here, but the rain is much welcomed by our dry soil. Soon we'll be able to have a bonfire on the beach -- the City should be lifting the fire ban in a few days.

That will be welcome, hagatha

same thing.

How was your cooking class, family?

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Thanks Soot, I'm having Pumpkin Spice coffee with my Pumpkin Spice Bagel this morning.

Although it's supposed to hot, hot, hot again this weekend, it was down to 51° here last night. It was nice to open up the windows! I'm still listening to a few dozen hummingbirds out my window - they are a bit late leaving for the migration this year.

Draclvr, we're now in the time of year where the Anna's Hummingbirds decide whether to hang around here or not, so we've all made sure that the feeders we have out now are going to be available all winter. This year we'll have about 10 heated feeders over four properties. We should have at least 10-12 birds overwintering.

Although I will miss mine twittering are fussing at each other, I am just about read to give up mixing up a gallon of sugar water every 24 hours for the season!

51 degrees ... wow Draclvr, that cool temperature must be wonderful ... we'll get back to those temperatures eventually down here

Hagatha ... we really enjoy our 'quick glimpses' of our little hummingbird friends and plan to keep our feeders out too as the migration flocks pass us

Didn't make it in time today ... so brought some Twinings British Afternoon Tea for the Break Room and some small cakes and pastries

Have a wonderful day all

same thing.

Yes, in the winter it's quite a bit of work, especially as I have to make sure I have the feeders full before I go to bed every night.

Sadly no humming birds here (last seen on holiday in the BVI quite a few years ago), but we are still slaves to checking that the assorted bird feeders are adequately replenished each day!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning everyone

I brought a pot of Copper Moon Sumatra dark roast this morning for the break room ... enjoy!

T.G.I.F.

sports and chores.

So here's an odd thing -- my local coffee roaster just brought in a new Kenyan coffee, a little darker than their usual roasts, and for some reason I can use it for cappuccinos, but if I use it in the French press and add cream, the cream curdles. I've tried it with two different cream containers, both fresh, and it always happens with this specific coffee and no other. It must be quite an acidic coffee.

Weird. I can't think of any other reason it would do that.

That is very odd.

Well, I am glad the weather is a little cooler our Hvac system stopped working. We have no air-conditioning right now.... lol what else can go wrong... the loaner refrigerator we got is down in the basement area... I am making lots of trips down those stairs... and heavens if i forget just one thing.. guess this is one way to loose weight. I'll be ready for that cup of coffee in the morning.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. A Sam's trip is on the agenda today. Dinner with karaoke to follow at the Eagles tonight.

Well, I'm learning to accept that my dog has changed. Been along time since I've lived with an aging dog. He doesn't always wake me up in the morning to eat. First time this happened, I paniced. He didn't wake up to eat and didn't come running when I put food in his bowl. He ate a little bit out of my hand but, though I tried, he wouldn't get out of bed. When the play day people came, he sat right up, barked and went over to get leashed and go. This morning I was up at 6:14 and put food in his bowl. He slept until play people came. THEN he barked and got up. Steadied his legs and went over to leave. When that happens, they feed him there. So, now I know to not worry, but to be ready for however things will happen with him. He's 9 now but aging fast from the muscle condition. We both have to get past aches and pains of waking up in the morning.

I know how he feels some mornings. Good for you to let him just be himself as he ages.

I'm glad he is happy butterflybabe.

Our kitty is not doing well again. No more urination problems but maybe the infection got into her bloodstream.

Did your kitty get any antibiotics administered while she was at the vet, ob? That could explain why she seemed to get better for a while. She would need a week to ten days' worth, though, to probably get rid of the urinary infection completely. As I said before, I have never known these things to clear up on their own without proper treatment. I had a couple cats in the past with this sort of issue. I am sorry to hear that kitty is doing poorly again.

I'm not sure what the vet did as I wasn't there but my brother had found these https://www.purina.com/friskies/wet-cat-food/lil-soups and was able to give her the medicine in them, though some was originally wasted. I guess he shouldn't have cancelled the follow up appointment though. We've lost cats to kidney issues that we didn't know they had until it was too late. This is seeming to be too late again now unfortunately, even though we did have the warning of the UTI. I was actually hesitant to even post this.

I am glad to hear that kitty got some or most of the medication that way. It can be difficult with kidney issues and trying to catch them early. One of my cats did not show symptoms until it had progressed to the point where it was really too late to help her other than trying to take good care of her otherwise, so I understand the difficulties. I am very sorry kitty is not getting better and she may well need more antibiotics.

I was actually going to ask, oldbroad. If kitty didn't get all 10 days of those antibiotics at home, the UTI may not have been completely cleared up. I had one last spring that I took back in 3 times even though she DID get all 10 days of antibiotics at home. Turned out she has crystals in her urine. Which means we have to feed her this very pricey UR dry cat food. Luckily she likes it! So far, no more UTIs.

Thank you Marian and thanks for that info Drac!

same thing.

Sorry to hear about your cat, oldbroad. My previous girl had several bad UTI's in her last two years and a couple of times even had blood in her urine. It was very important to get her antibiotics into her, although it was a struggle. One time we even left her at the vet for a week so he could treat her properly. I hope you can your cat back to health.

Thanks hagatha!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Oldbroad, Positive thoughts for your kitty.

Happy Sunday one and all

I've brought a pot of Bold Samatra coffee along with a nice malty Scottish Breakfast tea

Have a wonderful Sunday

We've had several cats that had to have the special food and it did the trick for many years. Those follow ups are important. I hope kitty gets better, Oldbroad.

I'm having one of those days today so think I will just stay in my room with the door shut and take a day! So glad I have a computer in my bedroom on days like this

Hope you all have a great one!

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend.

Good 🌄 morning everyone

Starbucks Sumatra and Scottish Breakfast tea on tap this morning in the Break Room

Have a blessed day

Good morning, all.

A lovely day here on the coast. We've got the boat on the trailer after having it serviced, so I'll give it a good scrub for algae before we get it back in the water -- hopefully my husband is up to a few more boat trips this Fall, before the Humpbacks leave.

Thank you for the well wishes yesterday connie and L4L.

Our Cubby cat lost her battle early this morning. Now we just have two left, her sister and her mom. The mom is the one who pokes her claws in me and the sister is the one I've never even been able to pet once in all the 13 years we've had these cats. She gets scared when I look at her but she loves the heck out of my brother.

hagatha, I hope you and your husband are able to make it out on the boat.

Oh, no, oldbroad. I am so sorry to hear about your kitty. Large virtual hug.

So sorry Oldbroad, never easy losing a loved one, hagatha, hope hubby can make it to see the whales... how exciting...

Oldbroad, I'm so sorry about your cat.

Oh, Oldbroad, I am so very sorry! Gentle hugs

Thanks Drac, Winfrey, hagatha, and looney. The words and hugs do help.

Late getting here but SO sorry to hear about your cat, oldbroad. Always distressing to lose a pet

oldbroad, I am so very sorry to hear of your cats passing. Hugs to you. They are family and my heart goes out to you.

oldbroad, I am sorry to hear of your cats passing, sending lots of virtual hugs your way.

Thanks Mad, Ana, and Starcom! Much appreciated!

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the BreaK Room. Oldbroad I'm very sorry you lost your kitty.

Good morning everyone

I brought a pot of malty Scottish Breakfast tea and a pot of Fresh Roasted Amaretto coffee

Oh OldBroad ... I am so sorry you lost your Cubby cat ... prayers and thoughts winging their way to you

Tootin Toosday everyone

Never easy to end a pet's life

I'm recovering from 'fog' brain. One of the medications I take helps with a side affect I get from my sleep apnea. I do not have narcolepsy, but my brain is foggy first thing in the morning. This med basically works to wake up my brain. It is considered a 'controlled' substance. Presuming you all know what that means; suffice to say, I forgot to pay attention and didn't put in the request until I had taken my last pill which was last Thurs. They couldn't get in touch with my doc until yesterday. So I was without it for more days than ever before. Sleepy, headaches, not able to think about doing much of anything. Finally, picked it up yesterday morning. First time in my life I took water with me and took a pill while in the parking lot. When I worked, it used to scare me to feel this way, and was careful to not do anything that demanded a lot of concentrating, or was forced to stay home. It still amazes me the difference I feel with and without the meds.

Huey's doing ok. Sometimes he drags, somethings he's eager; sometimes he eats, sometimes he doesn't. I'm learning to accept and take it one day at a time.

Don't know about the rest of you, but I can't believe we're heading into Fall already The cold weather can take its time getting here, that's for sure

Awww.... hugs, butterflybabe. Foggy brain is not fun.

Thank you connie, soot, and butterflybabe!

I hope everybody has a good day!

butterflybabe, I know how awful that fog-brain is. My Hashimoto's Hypothyroiditis went undiagnosed for at least 25 years, according to my Endocrinologist, and by the end of it I was so foggy-brained at times that I was unable to function. I had no idea what was wrong with me. Scary.

same thing and cooking class, we are making taco.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Drac, Birthday Cupcakes in the Break Room.

Good morning, happy day to all.

Thank you, Connie! It's cooled off here, so I'm glad to have better weather to go out and sort 7 buckets of tomatoes into boxes to continue ripening!

Aww; thanks Drac!

Hagatha, I googled the term you use, and I think a house cleaner I once had had something like it. He never used a medical term, but explained that he had a gland that 'floated'. Whenever he got a cold, his body couldn't tell the different between a cold germ and the gland. Each time it happened, he got so sick he ended up in the hospital. I told him that if he ever got sick when he was working for me, to allow the EMTs to bust down the door to get to him. Later in life he developed anemia. Unfortunately, his body attached the covid vaccine causing him to loose his life.

Don't know about you, but, most times, as long as I know what I'm dealing with or why it's happening, I can handle it.

Butteflybabe, it's an autoimmune disease, usually genetic, and yes, while the disease is active it will attack other glands. If it's left untreated it can kill you (we think my father died because of untreated Hashimoto's). It's quite treatable once it's diagnosed, but until fairly recently doctors had the mistaken belief that it was rare and refused to test for it. Apparently I'm pretty tough, since I survived decades without treatment, but I had no idea what was happening and it was fairly freaky at times.

As you say, now that I know, I can deal with the odd issue when it crops up. As inherited incurable diseases go, it's not a bad one to have, once diagnosed.

Good evening everyone ... didn't get the chance to pop in today

So...I brought a pot of Numi Dry Desert Lime tea for your pleasure this evening

Take care and sleep well

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning everyone

Raining, raining, raining

I brought a nice large pot of Bold Sumatra Reserve for the Break Room

Have a wonderful day

Bright, sunny and coolish this morning here in east central Missouri! Beautiful day ahead that will start quite nicely with a cup of your Bold Sumatra Reserve, soot!

Hello Boomers, hope all is well with you! So sorry to read about your kitty, oldbroad. Hugs to you.

Plodding along here as best we can.

Have a great day everyone.

Much love,

Mary

Thank you MsMercury! It is so good to see you posting!

same thing.

We managed to get the boat cleaned and serviced and back in the water today, thanks to our friends next door -- just in time for more rain, rain, rain for another week. Oh well. We'll still get more decent weather over the next few weeks.

Making a pot of lamb and chick pea stew for dinner. It's starting to smell good!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Good to see you Mary.

sports and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping is on the agenda today. Working the kitchen for our dinner at the Eagles tonight, Trivia to follow.

the weekend is here! Have a wonderful day everyone

Sumatra coffee and Scottish Breakfast tea in the Break Room.

Chores projects gardening music and sleep at the end of the day

Well, another cat has found us.. the problem is is that it is a boy that is not fixed and he is after Little One , our young girl... he won't leave.. he is a sweetie, likes loving, so we are going to get him , he comes to eat.. and take him to the Vet get him fixed and shots... the Vet said he would then find him a home. Our problem here is people here won't take responsibility of their animals.. cats they don't fix and dogs they let roam all over with out identification tags on them.... ridiculous!

Is you Little One not spayed yet? I got all my females spayed at 4 months - I've had way too many come up pregnant by 6 months old! He probably belongs to someone if he's friendly, but if he's not neutered, he is going to keep spreading his genes everywhere he can. We live in the same kind of area here. I've had an old tom cat hanging around here for about 7 years, but you can't get near him. I think he's truly feral. He's pretty healthy because he eats the barn cat food! But I haven't seen him for at least 3 months - won't be sorry if he finally met his end as he's a great deal of trouble sometimes attacking my spayed and neutered cats.

Mary, so good to see you

I've been in the kitchen most of the day, but I did take the time to sit down and read the entire Wall Street Journal today. G'son and hubby will handle the dishes. I smell delicious aromas from the direction of the kitchen (son is cooking), so will be enjoying dinner in a few minutes.

We have had rain for a week and will have for another one. Can't complain about the rain though as I don't enjoy when we have droughts.

We have many irresponsible pet owners in our area. Drives me nuts!

Have a great night ya'll

Yes, Drac she is spayed. She is just a real timid cat and he knows it.

Yup. That's what this feral tom does... he picks on my most timid cats and also on my very old 16 year old cat. He's an a**hole!

Good morning everyone

I brought a pot of Starbucks 'Cold Brew' this morning along with a quart of heavy cream and some sugar ... let's splurge for the day if you can ... and if you can't then just put 3 ice cubes in your cup and pour the cold brew over them and enjoy

Wishing you all a quiet Sunday ... projects and rest on my calendar for the day

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning.

Cold-brew coffee is delicious. I've often thought of buying the equipment to make it at home. I defintely go for the heavy cream and sugar, too. It's the best thing to take on a hike in the woods in the summer if you want to avoid too much liquid.

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today. Meeting at the Eagles tonight.

Hagatha and Soot, I enjoy cold coffee, also. My former sister in law liked hers piping hot. She once made a trip to Starbucks and bought me a cup of my favorite. Since it was mid-morning, I directed her to leave it in the kitchen for later. She reminded me it would get cold. Grossed her out when I told her I was okay with it!

butterflybabe, as long as it's black coffee! I usually have a cup of cold coffee in the afternoon that I have saved for myself.

Good afternoon all

I brought a pot of Komodo Dragon blend coffee and bottled Fiji water for the Break Room this afternoon

Moadnday Monday is upon us ... have a wonderful day

I don't care for cold coffee much, especially if it's meant to be hot. I don't really think I like Starbuck's coffee much anyway, though I do like the Hazelnut Frappuccino or whatever it's called.

Have a good week everyone!

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning everyone

The car decided it wanted some tender care maintenance this morning

I brought a nice pot of Dark Sumatra Reserve to get us through the day

I'll take a Danush and then I'm off

Have a wonderful day 😊

same thing.

Soot, I hope you get your car back up and running.

You know, I've never had any car trouble with my cars. All three have been Hondas. Sturdy machines, they are. My first car ever was a black Prelude. It had four wheel steering, which was amazing -- all 4 wheels turned, not just two.. You could practically park sideways. Now I have an Accord, which is kind of like driving a small tank, even the sport model that I have.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight.

Howdy Hello all

I hope so too hagatha as we took son's car to dealer for maintenance this morning

I brought a large pot of Americana coffee to get us through the day

I'll grab a bagel to get me through the morning

Have a great 'hump' day everyone

same thing.

Americana sounds excellent. I'll have one, too.

Today is medical day for my husband, so we're off to the hospital.

It looks like it may clear this afternoon so we'll take another shot at a boat ride, tides permitting. We'd like to get up into the inlets north of here to see if we can find a grizzly. They feed up along the beaches and in the river mouths at this time of year, and you can get some great photos. Two years ago we saw a sow and two cubs, and then a lone male. When he appeared the sow hustled her babies off into the forest until he left. At the same time, a black bear wandered down a hill to the beach, saw the grizzly male and quietly moved back into the woods.

Of course, the humpbacks are still here, and we might see a couple of those.

Fall started this afternoon. it will still be hot, but hopefully, not quite as muggy!

Hope you all have a great evening

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning and Happy Thump Day everyone

I brought a pot of Protein Coffee (Javapro) for everyone to sample today with a mix of caffeine and whey protein powder to keep your day going!


Have a wonderful day everyone

I'm going to grab one of those chocolate cake donuts to go with my coffee this morning

Protein coffee? Interesting. I'll have a look. I actually thought coffee was a food group all on its own.

Yeah, protein coffee does not sound very appealing! I agree that coffee is a food group all on its own!

On that note, I read something that said one of the crops most threatened by climate change is coffee!

The horror. The horror.

I read that too!

So, I looked up how to make protein coffee, and it actually looks like it might be tasty, after all

I have this really nutritious chocolate whey protein powder I bought to make John smoothies, only he prefers the vanilla flavour, so I need to use up the chocolate. Basically, to make protein coffee, you make a pot of coffee and add the chocolate protein powder, add milk, and it's a warm mocha shake. Or let the coffee get cold, and turn it into a mocha milkshake.

Could work. I might try it tomorrow morning for breakfast instead of my usual peanut butter on bread.

same thing.

hagatha, I will be interested to hear how it turns out! I'm a bit of a purist when it comes to my strong really good black coffee!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Karaoke with friends tonight.

Draclvr, I made a sort of half-hearted attempt at the protein coffee this morning, not wanting to waste any calories unnecessarily. I used a tablespoon of the chocolate whey powder instead of a whole scoop, which would be enough for a pot of coffee rather then a mug.

The verdict: excellent mocha flavour, but I guess I didn't blend it enough because it was a bit lumpy, so I had to strain it. I should have thrown the whole thing into my blender. I might play around with this for a it to see what works best.

I can see this being really good as a cold mocha shake with a dollop of ice cream, though. Make a pot of coffee, cool it down in the fridge, add chocolate protein, add a scoop of ice cream, add milk and blend. Morning coffee and breakfast for a hot summer day.

But yes, I tend to be a purist with my coffee in the morning. There are two roasteries that I love, one in Vancouver and one in Victoria, and they deliver here within a couple of days of ordering, so I've always got some very nice coffee on hand. Both roasteries recently started selling a Kenya bean, which is absolutely delicious.

Since I'm not a fan of chocolate - yes, I know!!! - this just sounds awful to me! I remember Hawkavonpuka sent me some Kona coffee that was flavored with chocolate and it was just a terrible waste of an excellent coffee in my opinion!

Oh Gosh, I love chocolate, but I don't use protein powder as we try to be whole foods focused, so I'll have to give it a miss too.

It's a gorgeous day in AL today...anyone thinking of a trip to the south, this is the time of year to do it. Course this gorgeous weather won't last long but I'll enjoy every minute of it. I had a nice run through the neighborhood this morning. Off to do some bookkeeping this afternoon. Hope you all are having a wonderful day

We've had a couple of beautiful days here, too, and it looks like this weather will extend to some of next week.

We had a frustrating two days with medical stuff -- my husband's needle phobia came back with a vengeance after years of being okay -- and we had to make several trips to the hospital to try to get blood drawn for his chemo labs, so instead of enjoying a boat ride in the sun, we were stuck here in town. However, tomorrow will be nice, and we have nothing on our plates, so we'll be getting our for sure.

Looney4labs, we used to eat a mostly whole foods diet but John's cancer has completely changed how we eat, because I have to feed him what appeals and what will stay down. As a result of the diet change, my weight has gone up, and for the first time in my life I actually have to watch what I eat -- we now eat far more red meat than we used to, for example. Every now and again I make a completely vegetarian meal, but it's risky because a lot of the time it doesn't appeal to him.

sports and chores.

Hagatha, I can well imagine. What he will eat has to be paramount. Gentle hugs

And there is a lot of cake involved.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping this morning, dinner and karaoke at the Eagles tonight.

Good morning, happy Saturday. The weather looks wonderful...

A bit foggy here this morning - really beautiful looking over the rolling woods off into the distance behind us. Enjoying some good black coffee from Germany this morning. We have an Aldi store in the next town over which is a German company, so they have Fair Trade stuff like coffee. Amazingly good and amazingly cheap!

cooler temperatures have invaded our region ... maybe it will last?

Found this the other day and thought I'd try it for the Break Room -- Jelly Donut Flavored Coffee ... oh my goodness but it is good

I'll have to check out our Aldi store Draclvr.

Have a wonderful day everyone

Jelly Donut flavoured coffee? All the taste with none of the calories?

Our favourite local coffee shop sells beans from a roastery in Victoria, and they have seasonal varieties in a changing roster, so there's always something different. And my favourite roastery, Artigiano, which only has shops in Vancouver, will ship here now, so I'm in coffee heaven. We have one specialty store here in town but it's more health-food/whole food/local produce oriented and they only sell coffee from local roasters I'm not crazy about. We don't have any really good stores like the ones we shopped at in Vancouver. the Bosa Foods and Choices and Whole Foods stores, where you can get any number of wonderful teas and coffees.

This morning it's Artigiano's Espresso, made in a stove-top espresso pot.

same thing.

Good Morning everyone. Coffee and tea are ready to start your day..... or you can wait to enjoy with Connie's breakfast!

Have a Super Sunday!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. It's good to see you Gerry, I hope all is well with you. Routine Dr. visit in the morning.

Good morning everyone

I'll have coffee and a Danish for sure

hagatha, you're in coffee heaven for sure

Enjoy your games family

Hey Ho Gerry it is good to see you

Best wishes for your appointment Connie

Have a wonderful Sunday all

Good morning, all.

We finally managed to get out in the boat for a few hours late in the afternoon yesterday. It was overcast, but blissfully calm. We spotted one lone sleeping humpback, then blasted over to Mittlenatch Island, where we hung out with hundreds of Harbour Seals and a large group of cranky, smelly, Stellar Sea Lions.

The sea lions had a number of babies with them, the smallest we've ever seen. And we heard, for the very first time, a baby sea lion try to roar. It's hilarious, a kind of high-pitched squeaky moan, contrasted with the adult noises, which include loud roaring, a sort of rude belching noise, and a wheezy trumpeting challenge.

Later, as we were coming in ahead of a storm, we watched a Peregrine Falcon trying to catch bait fish in the rough water off the lighthouse. It was being harassed by a couple of seagulls, so it never did catch anything.

Now we have a week of stormy weather, but we did ascertain that boating is still possible for my husband.

Today is football (soccer) day, with Arsenal playing Tottenham, so we're off to a neighbour's place for the big game.

That is wonderful hagatha!

Happy Sunday all!

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

A good day, hagatha! Bet you both enjoyed it since it's been a long time coming!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Routine doctor visit today. Going to the Eagles tonight, making plans for our Halloween Party. Have a Wonderful Monday everyone.

Great Stuff hagatha and very pleased for you both !!!!

Good morning everyone

Oh wow hagatha ... what an experience that must be ... I'd love to see, hear and smell it

Enjoying my Cold Brew Coffee this morning ... brought a pot of Bold Sumatra for the Break Room

Have a wonderful day y'all

Good afternoon to you all.

I started this morning to clean one flower bed but at a slow pace.

I'll continu this week to do so except for the geraniums.

With the rain we are getting, the grass decided to get green.

Nothing special great coming up.

I hope your week will be a good one.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

What a great day, Hagatha

It's still a gorgeous day in AL

I'll be heading out to pick up g'son in just a second. Hopefully, hubby will be home before I have to go so I can get the cold groceries put away. He is heading out to get his booster shot. I had Moderna, so I'm in waiting mode.

Ya'll have a great night

Good evening everybody and Tootin Toosday to you

I think I'll have toasted Bagels for dinner tonight ... thanks connie

Time to relax ... have a wonderful evening y'all

same thing.

Good Morning everyone. I've got the coffee and tea ready. Connie how did you make out at the doctor? I got my booster for Covid yesterday...feeling very tired this morning.

Hope you all have a super Hump Day!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Gerry, the doctor visit went well, getting my Covid booster this morning at Walgreens. Dinner and karaoke tonight with friends.

A beautiful good morning, everyone! It's been in the 90's for a few days, so some slightly lower temps in the low 80's are welcome here. So quiet here this morning - I'm enjoying it! Going to try to get my COVID booster later today. I have a tour at the horse rescue at 1:00 and then have to go in town to check on my friend's kitties while they are away camping.

She has automatic feeders for them so I don't have to run in town twice a day to feed them while they are camping. When I stopped yesterday, Colby had managed to get his pushed off the table it's on to the floor where it was turned over and unplugged! I don't know how long they were out of food, so I fed both him and Cheddar. Took me awhile to get the feeder set back up with feeding times and amounts! Love my Boyz, but Colby always manages to find some way to be a little monster! They didn't get much lap time yesterday!

Hi Everyone, life's been a technologically challenging for me. Last Thursday my PC wouldn't boot up. Driver went bad. Had problems in Feb, same thing happened. And the driver's not that old. Tech was able to get data from hard drive and is putting in a super duper driver. Meanwhile, getting used to new laptop. Haven't had one of those for while. More icons and stuff on it than I know what to do with. But my tech guy says it's a really good one, so I'm happy about that. Don't know about anyone else, but seems to me that every time lately that I replace something, the new model is harder to figure out.

Also challenging to work with websites that have recently changed, and nothing's where it used to do; gotta figure out what I'm doing.



otherwise, everything is just fine!

What? A driver is a piece of data that lets components "talk" to each other? Do you mean hard drive?

Butterflybabe, computer trouble is the worst! I always have two computers for that very reason, even if the second one is just a basic laptop for email and online browsing.

It's a beautiful day in AL today, although the mug factor is creeping back up.

I had a great workout today, and have been doing chores around the house. Will be making a salad to contribute to dinner in a few minutes.

Hope you all have a wonderful afternoon and evening.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Got my Covid booster yesterday, so far just a sore arm.

Good morning ... brought a large pot of Sumatra Dark Roast in the Break Room. Got my Covid booster the other day too connie with a sore spot on my arm.

Have a great Thursday everyone

Heading over to a local orchard to see if I can get enough of a certain kind of apple to make applesauce with. Stopping to get my COVID booster and debating on whether to get my flu shot at the same time!

Do you have "Granny Smiths" apples in the USA, Draclvr ??

That's what I use for apple sauce.

Not over sweet and totally delicious

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Howdy Hello one and all ... it's T.G.I.F.

Brought a pot of Costa Rica morning blend for everyone ... I'll have a Danish to go with mine

Have a wonderful day everyone

Since Draclvr hasn't come back to answer your question yet Mad, yes we do have Granny Smith apples here in the USA. I prefer them to most apples, though I do like the Honeycrisp apples also. I do not make applesauce.

sports and chores.

😑 Thanks, oldbroad

I'm not familiar with Honeycrisp apples.

Maybe we don't have them here in the U.K.

Good morning, working the kitchen at the Eagles tonight for our dinner, Trivia to follow. Have a Super weekend.

Good morning. Beautiful morning but it will be 90 later

Not sure what the day will bring, but I'll figure it out as I go along Hope your day is wonderful! :wavegirl;

Good morning everybody
have a wonderful Saturday
I brought a large pot of samatra dark roast coffee

I'm back! Yes, we do have Granny Smith apples here in the US, Mad. As you know they are a crisp, somewhat tart green apple. I find them totally PERFECT for an apple pie! But they are too tart for applesauce and I have to add sugar, which I prefer to not do. The Honeycrisp is also a great apple for eating. Here in Missouri we use one called Jonathan for making apple butter. But last year I found the perfect apple for making applesauce and only adding cinnamon and nutmeg, but no sugar. It's a Jonagold which is a cross between the more tart Jonathan and the sweeter Golden Delicious. But due to a killing late frost last spring, they didn't have any!! So I got half a bushel of Jonathan and half a bushel of Golden Delicious. I think we're going to make the applesauce this week, so I'm hoping it will be good!

So, personal preferences, Draclvr !!

I like my apple sauce to be quite "tart" and in fact, although I do add a very small amount of sugar, I also add lemon juice to make sure it stays zingy

[And I do the same for apple pies - where I also use Granny Smiths.]

We do have Jonathon apples here in the UK and I've bought them very occasionally but they are not a particular favourite for me.

I'm not a huge fan of Jonathons either... but people here make apple butter with them which uses large quantities of sugar and spices. They do make an excellent apple butter!

I've never heard of Apple Butter

same thing.

It's a "thing" here! Properly done, it's a couple of bushels of apples peeled, cored and sliced and placed into a huge copper kettle over a small wood fire. 10 pounds of sugar and spices like cinnamon and nutmeg are added. It is stirred constantly for MANY hours with a special wooden paddle until it becomes very thick and dark as the sugars caramelize. It is then preserved in glass jars. It is a family affair with everyone taking turns on the paddle. Our copper kettle and wooden paddle are over 150 years old!

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pZBVANbYVsY

We get about 15 different types of apple here in BC, though I've never heard of Jonathan apples.

Apple butter is a "thing" here, too. My grandmother also used to make peach butter, which was heavenly. She never gave anyone her recipe, preferring it to be a secret, so it died with her.

Awww, Hagatha, that is sad that the secret died with her.

Hope you all are having a most wonderful day! We started the day with a bit of drizzle

Hubby and I started watching Westworld last night..Wow !

Good morning everyone

I brought a pot of French dark roast coffee for the breakroom this morning

Apple butter is wonderful ... remember it as a kid when I lived in New England

Peach butter sounds heavenly ...

Hagatha, has anyone in the family tried to recreate the recipe?

Happy Sunday everyone

I think I almost prefer peach butter to apple butter on toast!

Haven't decided what is on the agenda for today... just a nice peaceful morning drinking coffee with the windows open!

Soot, I've been meaning to ask one of my siblings if they managed to tease out at least the basics of the peach butter recipe. Both of them are serious cooks and would have been curious. My aunt, who is also a great cook, thought she had the recipe but it was never quite the same.

It's a lovely day here. We have a few chores around the garden, but I was hoping for a drive somewhere, and maybe lunch. We'll have to see how it goes.

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

Family, I thought you watched football on Sundays!

Draclvr 🙂

Thanks for the video link.

What a labour intensive thing it is to make this butter !!

But it seems you all think it's worth it

Mad, like I said, it's a family affair and an excuse to get together! You can also do it the easy way in a crock pot, but where's the fun in that! I guess it's kind of like the big Italian families get together and make tomato sauce over an open fire all day.

i do falcons vs washington, pittsburgh vs green bay. carrie underwood sing, tampa bay vs new england.

That apple butter recipe sounds so good. My neighbor has an apple tree that he always lets go - and I have been thinking of hopping over the fence to fetch me a basket of them. Of course, I am too lazy to stir for a long time - I have a hard time when making my cream of tomato soup to stir for 10 minutes! but, what a neat way to get people together to all take a turn. It almost sounds like a barn raising party - where everyone chips in. My packers are currently winning, so I am a happy camper today!

Yes. Family AND fun sounds great, Draclvr

Family, glad you are watching football instead of court shows today! I thought it was strange that you posted court shows because I know how you love football...

Hi all,
Long time lurker, first time visitor
Been watching the football with family, keeping one eye on the Red Sox (talk about just falling in) and just about to get stuck into this weeks Uni, all part of managing our local lockdown.
A glass of bubbles beckons later

Flotsam, great to see you here! Glad you decided to drop in.

I hope everyone had a pleasant weekend.

court shows tomorrow.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with friend today. Meeting at the Eagles tonight, installing a new member. Great to see you here flotsam.

Good morning everyone

Taking the day off and extending my weekend

I stopped by Mel's Diner and picked up a large coffee urn for the break room today

connie, love the bagels

Hey flotsam, it is really great to have you pop in

Happy Monday everyone

Coffee in large quantities for me this morning.

Plans appear to be afoot for boating today, although I'm not really sure about the weather. The suggestion is to go up north and look for Grizzlies in the Brem River mouth, which is known for bear watching because of the particular eel-grass that grows there. This morning, though, we have very gloomy looking skies and definitely the possibility of rain. If we do go it will be with piles of clothing and a thermos or two or tea.

same thing.

Happy Tuesday morning! A mimosa methinks in the sun

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. A mimosa sounds good, flotsam.

We're having a standard October day here, which is to say we have clouds and rain, and then some brilliant sun and then more rain, and some further sun with cloudy periods and rain, and then later on, some wind and rain.

On the plus side, a pod of about 7 Orca went past just now, with a very young one in tow. The Transients seem to be breeding very successfully again this year.

It's overcast, then raining, then the sun is shining and the cycle repeats today. It is, on the other hand, not 90

Morning all. A nice day here, rain on the way, and you can really tell Spring has arrived and the cold weather has gone.
That's a great plus hagatha. We have dolphins in the bay outside which are always a treat to spot. No matter how many times it never gets dull.
Off to walk the dogs, then will keep an eye on the baseball

same thing.

Oh, right. Of course, you're heading into Spring, flotsam.

Southern hemisphere seasons are very confusing to us northerners. Christmas in the hottest season of the year just feels wrong -- no Christmas trees (not in Mombasa in 1968 anyway) , no turkey, blazing heat, and instead of playing in the snow, you go body surfing in the ocean.

Good evening everyone ... rain has been fairly steady now for two days and I am enjoying it

Tomorrow's walk with Little Soot may be cancelled though if the showers are heavy

sleep well

I had American friends hagatha who felt the same. Their previous posting was Hawaii, which was warm at Christmas but still 'colder' than the rest of the year, which they could cope with but not Christmas being the hottest time of the year.
I had Christmas in London as a very small child and would love to have a white Christmas as an adult.
Bottom of the fifth and so far so good for the Sox.

Sox just won
My wife and I sat on the Green Monster a few years back and had a very excellent time.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Mani/Pedi, then lunch with a friend today. Karaoke and dinner with friends tonight.

Sounds like a very pleasant day, Connie. There's really nothing more pampering than a good pedicure. My husband and I go for the 1.5 hours "his and hers" pedi at our local spa every few weeks.

same thing.

Morning all. Too windy to be outside today, so a new book beckons.

same thing.

It's a pretty nothing day here weather-wise. I haven't been playing my games much, of late, but now that summer is over and we're headed into non-stop rain for the next 5 months, I think I'll get back to it.

Good afternoon, thought I posted earlier. Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

- flotsam, is that reading or furthering your progress as an author?

Good morning everyone.

T.G.I.F.

Dark Roast Sumatra, Scottish Breakfast Tea and bottled Fiji water 9n ice in the Break Room.

Have a wonderful day 😊

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Karaoke with friends tonight.

Applesauce day with two friends! We will be working out in the garage where I have all my canning set up. Kim is bring a couple of chickens to do beer-in-the-rear chicken, an eggplant parmesan and some cole slaw. Patti is bring deviled eggs, brats and beans. We shall have a feast when we're done! We are all vaccinated and feel pretty comfortable getting together - it's been a long time!!

Drac, that sounds like a wonderful feast. Our thanksgiving in on Monday and we forgot all about it. I might see if I can scrounge a nice turkey breast from a local supplier.

By happy accident this morning I mixed two kinds of coffee bean together in the grinder and ended up with a truly fabulous cup of coffee -- half Costa Rica and half Kenya. Truly worth getting up for ! Too bad they're both seasonal varietals. Still, I'll enjoy it while I can.

college football and chores.

hagatha, the next life adventure will obviously be opening your own speciality coffee shop...

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping at Costco is on the agenda today. Dinner at the Eagles tonight, karaoke to follow.

hagatha, I'm sure you can conjure up something wonderful for your Thanksgiving on Monday! Our applesauce we made yesterday is heavenly. I didn't add any sugar, just cinnamon and nutmeg. We all agreed it was plenty sweet as it was because of the variety of apples. We used Jonathans and Golden Delicious. We each got 12 pints, so will have more good eating this winter!

pro football and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels, in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning, decorating the Eagles for Halloween later today.

Sunday greetings to all: strong coffee and Petit Pain Au Chocolat fresh out of the oven followed by autumnal-ish garden tasks this morning as we have warm sunshine (after several wet and misty days), probably with some reading/gaming later in the day as it is starting to get dark quite early

I must have grabbed the very last stuffed turkey breast in town, so we're all set for a nice turkey dinner. With just the two of use it's pretty basic anyway -- no pie, no special vegetables, just turkey, gravy mashed potatoes, carrots and Brussel sprouts (which I hate but he loves) and gravy. Even that will last for days and days.

Dang, that sounds SO good, hagatha! I always look forward to doing our Thanksgiving dinner just for us. Hubby likes sitting in the living room listening to me "puttering around in the kitchen" as he puts it and I dearly love my puttering around!

Mmm. I think the Petit Pain Au Chocolat that Lex hd sounds yummy!

I hope you enjoy your Thanksgiving dinner hagatha!

That sounds like my cup of tea, hagatha. I hope you both enjoy it

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore.

No football today, family?

falcons vs jets, packers vs bengals, carrie underwood sang, now cheifs vs bills.court shows tomorrow as grocery shopping.

I wondered why you posted court shows for today! That sounds much better!

Drac, family always posts on the current day what she will be doing the next day. Kind of like Tomorrow's game today.

that true, drac are watching the chiefs game.

Oh, sorry! I didn't know that! Thank you, oldbroad!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. We had fun decorating the Eagles yesterday. Now it looks like Halloween, witches, ghosts, and ghouls greet you when you enter.

Morning all, raining here and waiting for the Red Sox to begin.

same thing.

Red Sox win just now
What a series.

I don't follow baseball much anymore but the Red Sox are my second favorite team. I don't know why, there is no reason. Cubs, of course, are number one!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Congrats to the Sox, but I'm a Rays fan.

Good morning Connie, flotsam, oldbroad and family

Dark roast Sumatra, Scottish breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water for the Break Room.

Have a Tootin Toosday everyone

Wow. We went from the most beautiful October day to a howling storm complete with cancelled ferries. Good day to sift through my games and decide what to play next.

Still raining down here, so a good day to get stuck into Uni.
Cold leftover pizza for breakfast
Have a great Wednesday everybody

Ah, cold pizza - one of my favorite breakfasts with coffee!

cooking class, making salmon patties,, homemade mashed potatoes, green beans, have nfl cupcakes, apple cinnamon cookies.

Man, that all sounds so good, family!

And here I thought it was just me Draclvr

We've been known to tuck into breakfast pizza from time to time, too.

I don't eat breakfast but I do love cold pizza!

I hope everybody is having a good week!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight.

Good evening everyone

Busy day today but it was (still is technically) Wednesday and we are now half way thru the week!!

Yum ... cold pizza flotsam ... I could/would live on cold pizza

Have a wonderful evening

same thing.

Its afternoon-ish on Thursday here now, and the pizza is long gone
Easing lockdown arrangements mean we can hopefuly visit my daugter soon.
In the meantime, a walk on the beach with the dogs beckons.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning everyone
Pot of Sumatra coffee for the break room this morning

Super busy day.Great run at the park and lots of cooking and dishes and a little taxi driving. On a little break for the moment until time for Bible Study tonight. Son is making dinner, and g'son is doing the dishes. I'm watching Harry Potter and the Half Blood Prince. Haven't watched these movies for years and years years

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning one and all

I brought a pot of High Voltage coffee for the break room today ... it'll kick start and keep you going!

Have a wonderful T.G.I.F. day

I might need a little of that high voltage coffee this morning! Rainy, dreary day here. Already dropped my elderly cat off at the vet and now I have to wash all the bedding... she peed on the bed last night! I knew SOMEONE had a UTI as I saw some puddles with blood on the floor, so I had to put one outside last night to try to eliminate the culprit. Well, I found out at 3:00 am!!

Sorry to read this Drac, hope she gets better soon. Dreary over here also....

Worse than dreary here. Rain, wind, and now it's so dark and foggy we can't see across the Passage.

I've been having terrible insomnia lately. Too much on my mind, I guess. I definitely need some high-test coffee this morning.

Thanks connie and soot.

Drac Hope your kitty will be okay.

It's been pretty dreary around here the last several days also.

Missed you yesterday hagatha. Did you get any gaming in?

college football and chores.

She is fine, oldbroad. Thank you! She has a mild UTI as I suspected, but now she has crystals in her urine which will require a special urinary cat food just like my other cat. Egads! They cost me a fortune in food alone! She may or may not eat it, but I do need to use the one she DOES like to get her thyroid meds in her. Going to be interesting!

Drac, both of my previous cats ended up having multiple health problems as they got older. They're a lot of work, but so worth it.

The first one, a solid, trusting long-haired calico, would come to me every morning to get her insulin jab. She'd literally just sit beside me and wait for me to give her the shot. In the evening she would sit on my lap so that I could put a cup of Ringer's solution under her neck skin because her kidneys were shot.

Cat number two was hypothyroid and used to get bad UTI's when she got older. In the end her food was more thyroid medication paste than food. And then she had a mini-stroke and went blind, which was heart-breaking. Poor little girl.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping is on the agenda today. Working the kitchen for our dinner at the Eagles tonight, Trivia to follow.

After I have a couple cups of coffee, I'm heading out to the barn to bring in my garlic. Looks like there might be about 5 pounds out there hanging where they were cured. I will shuck the outside layers off and trim off the roots. I use a dry brush to clean them up. I use the majority as dried minced garlic which I then use all year round. It's VERY tedious work to take each clove out of it's covering. I pulse it in a small food processor with a little dry white wine. I could use water, but why when there is wine! Then I spread it out on the trays and put in my trusty old dehydrator. I got about two quarts of dried minced garlic last year, gave away quite a lot and am down to the last of my jar!

Pita is 15 and this is her first UTI, but it may not be her last. She is NOT amused with the special urinary health canned cat food! I'll use her old favorite to her her thyroid meds in her, but she's just going to have to figure this out! I have a barn cat who was not able to be touched and has not seen a vet since she was spayed - 17 years ago! She now lets me pet her and give her a small can of canned cat food. She is the picture of health!

Good morning Connie, Draclvr and others that pop in for some Break Room snacks

I brought a pot of Bold Sumatra Reserve coffee along with Scottish Breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water this morning.

Chores, projects, gardening, a good book and music are on my docket today
Sounds like a busy day Draclvr ... keeping Pita in my thoughts ... have you named your Barn cat

Have a wonderful weekend everyone

Yes, the barn can was named Squeaky because of her gawd-awful croaky meow! Pita is named for being a certain kind of PAIN!

I wondered if you still had Pita Draclvr and actually almost asked you not long ago. I remember when I had to ask you what that meant when you posted something about her long ago.

We once had a cat named Squeak (without the y) because she had a timid little meow. My pesky little cat is named Mona because she used to make a lot of long loud moaning noises when we first brought them all in the house. That was before she was spayed and she wanted to go out carousing.

That sounds like a lot of garlic. I get tired of peeling the cloves at about half a head, if not sooner.

I get tired of peeling cloves too! But once they are dehydrated, that's the last time for another year. I put some in my little spice grinder to make garlic powder too.

pro football and chores.

We had a big garlic crop this year, too. Last year we chopped it all up really finely and put it in an ice cube tray, which worked really well, and this year we just froze them in a glass jar -- too lazy for all that chopping!

We also have more potatoes than I know what to do with (vats of soup, I guess) and a huge crop of butternut squashes -- again, soup, I think, and maybe a nice vegetarian squash curry for dinner tomorrow night, or maybe spicy roasted squash pasta sauce.

Our neighbours who we share this property with did all the work this year and just brought the vegetables over. They've been awfully good to us since John became too frail to work in the garden. We really lucked out when we bought this place.

Good morning everyone

French roast coffee, English Breakfast tea and bottled spring water for the break room.

Have a wonderful Sunday

That's why I just use a small food processor! I WISH I had a lot of potatoes and onions too. Both those crops were just horrid this year. I also like to put my onions in a food processor and they dehydrate.

Stayed up late reading, so got up late and am still drinking some of soot's French roast coffee!

Good afternoon, we went out for breakfast. When I got home I started working in the yard and lost track of time. This is the first morning the temps have been in the lower 60's, Wonderful for working outside.

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang steelers vs seahawk, no russel wilson.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Meeting at the Eagles tonight.

Good morning everybody

Wishing you all a wonderful day today ... we've enjoyed cooler temperatures

Sumatra coffee for the break room

We've finally got a lovely day here, so we're planning a boat trip with the neighbours. The humpbacks are still here for another couple of weeks. It'd be wonderful to see them before they leave.

same thing.

We managed to get out for a few hours and saw a lone male Orca and , later, four humpbacks, which we stayed with for much of the afternoon. At one point two of them popped right beside out boat, which was thrilling for our neighbours, who had never seen a whale close up.

What a GREAT day, hagath!

Sounds good hagatha!

It really was wonderful, especially as we have six months of rain ahead of us.

My husband's medications have been tweaked quite a bit and he feels better. Also, the new chemo he's on is supposed to help with pain management, too. All of the medical people we work seem to think there's a bit more life in the old chassis, after all.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning Connie hagatha oldbroad Draclvr and family

Brought a pot of Italian dark roast and Lipton Tea for the Break Room.

Tootin Toosday to y'all!!

Had an early morning wakeup call at an ungodly hour because certain four-legged people around here don't respect their humans. It was a good opportunity to hit the on-line Hudson's Bay sale for my winter wardrobe, though, so I'm all stocked up on wool clothing for the coming colder weather.

Looks like another nice day, so if it's calm we'll go boating again. Otherwise, I'll make a vat of potato-leek soup for the coming week.

That sounds good, hagatha! I made a carrot leek soup that was pretty good last week. Today, I'm finishing up a roasted vegetable beef and barley soup. 'Tis the season for soup!

hagatha, hope your four-legged people give you a break this evening

Yes it is Draclvr!

same thing and cooking class, we are making hotdogs, onion rings, and cupcakes.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight.

Garlic, more garlic. Got about 1/3 of the way through my pile of garlic cloves yesterday before my back started screaming at me. Got 3 cups of dehydrated minced garlic out of the dehydrator though! No vampires at my house!

Drac, I'm really liking the peeled garlic cloves in the mason jar in the freezer this year. It's the least work I've had to do with my garlic crop. They defrost quickly when you need them.

Good afternoon Connie Draclvr hagatha family and others who stop in for a snack and/or beverage.

I brought a pot of Chocolate And Banana Coffee today as both are favorites of mine

Have a wonderful afternoon

I'll try that Chocolate and Banana Coffee soot, mixed together please. I have had Banana Split Coffee which I like.

Is Halloween around the corner or something? I keep reading about garlic Don't use it much myself. I know it's good for ya, but can't stand too much of the smell. Once had an Italian restaurant in my neighborhood; driving by it at night, the garlic was in the air, seemed notably worse than other Italian places. Years ago, while eating lunch with the ladies at work, one of them had prepared a noodle dish for herself, and soon realized she'd put in too much garlic. It was a small room, and was instantly filled with the aroma. It calmed down when it came out of the microwave but, meanwhile, I almost had to hold my breath, phew. No offense to any garlic loving friends

Though I haven't posted for a while, I'm relatively fine. Still going to chiro 2x week. Lately he's been applying electro stimulation therapy to my right side to speed up the healing cause I'm sick of it already. Lost 13 lbs and half came back. Don't know why. Doc says I'm doing everything right. It is what it is. Can't wait to be able to walk without pain. Enough is enough! Got my covid booster today, so that's done.

Puppy is fine. Can't jump onto anything but still as frisky as his legs will allow as long as he doesn't move too fast to upset his balance.

Finally found a handyman in my neighborhood and getting some stuff done. Still gotta find help for the one project that's most important to me, but happy to get a bunch of little things done

Though we're still having pleasant weather, can't help but be aware that in another month or so, things will all change. Not really ready for it, but starting look at 'winterizing'. Get a tarp cover on my lawn furniture, and get car into garage.

Good to see you posting butterflybabe and to know that you and the pup are both okay!

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning 😎

Dark roast Sumatra, Scottish breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water for the Break Room.

Have a wonderful day everyone

I managed to burn my stove-top coffee maker last week through inattention, so I've bought myself a nice, shiny new Bialetti. It's much heavier than the last one I had, and the lid doesn't leak like the other one did, and the coffee came out good and strong. Yum.

Good afternoon all. I'll have a Danish and a Scottish Breakfast Tea. I already made myself some Maple Bacon Coffee, the last of the bag.

Last weekend it was a bit cooler in our house than today but with warmer weather in the forecast. That's behind us now so I turned on the heat today as it looks like Autumn has sprung and I don't want to wait until the last minute and find out it doesn't work.

Hello to you all.

I'm not writing much these days.

I'm working around in the gardens.

Tomorrow I will put up the car shelters with my two sons.

I'm still around and will be writing soon.

Take care all.

We have a heating and cooling company come in and check out our furnace every fall before we turn it on. We have propane gas heat, so it's a lot of peace of mind.

Hi Chief!

We used to have our furnace and air checked every year but it got to be a problem for various reasons and we stopped. I don't usually worry about turning on the air but I do get nervous about the heat. I think it's called forced air.

Yes, ours is forced air too, but the fuel is propane gas. Yours may be electric. We won't turn ours on until it gets checked... whatever it takes. I have a gas fireplace in the living room I can turn on if it gets too cold.

Hi, Chief!

Draclvr, our last home had propane heat, hot water, stove and fireplaces. I was always a bit leery of it. Fortunately the strata council always made sure our furnaces and fireplaces were checked every year.

Our furnace is gas, not propane, which I'd never know would be used to heat a house. It does sound scary.

same thing.

oldbroad, propane is LPG or Liquified Petroleum Gas and is a gas that is stored as a liquid by compression. You probably have natural gas. All the more reason to have it inspected every year, no matter the issues.

Good Morning everyone. It's been a while since I've visited the Break Room. Sounds like you all are doing well. Nice to see you here Chief and butterflybabe.

A special dark roast coffee and a strong breakfast tea are ready to share with Connie's breakfast.

Take Care everyone. Enjoy your day!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. It's good to see you here Gerry. Karaoke with friends tonight.

Felt like yesterday. Woke up 1:30 am Thursday with sore arm from the booster. Last night took 2 Ibuprophen and slept thru the night. Don't use that stuff unless I have to. Sometimes it's the only thing that works when things flare up; and rainy, cooler weather doesn't help.

Handyman did get a few things done but not as helpful as I'd hoped. I don't like it when some questions or challenges something I want done in my house. I had purchased a new doorbell. When he asked if the current one didn't work, I assured him it did but I wanted something different from what the previous owner had installed. An unnecessary conversation. A little while after installing the new one, as he was leaving to go home, the bell went off and no one had touched it. He unscrewed the doorbell and said the wire much have touched something. He then wrapped the wires with electrical tape. My dad and ex both did electrical work, so I knew that he should have already done that. While he we were looking at something in my bathroom, my dog came home (it was 5pm). He wasn't upset by the dog, but not enthusiastic as most people are. After all Huey is a cutie. We'll see....

Otherwise, life is just dandy!

butterflybabe, I know what you mean about uppity contractors. We just bought a new dishwasher and the installer called to make an appointment today. The man was insufferably arrogant and patronizing, so much so that I told Home Depot to find me someone else for the install.

T.G.I.F. good afternoon on and all

Time for a different handyman ButterFlyBabe

Have a great weekend

college football and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and Trivia with friends at the Goldenrod Eagles Club tonight. Shopping this morning is on the agenda.

Good morning everyone

Folgers Breakfast Blend coffee and bottled Fiji water in the Break Room.

The weekend has arrived and it will keep me busy ... take care all!

Good for you, hagatha!

I still have a hard time talking back to someone who'se being nasty/disrespectful. My dad was like that and I soon learned it wasn't worth challenging him, the result was worse than letting it go. But now that I'm retired and don't have to 'report' or 'be nice' to anyone (so to speak), my therapist has been working to help me recognize when I could have done different, and how to act, not react with it. Only recently was I finally able to recognize and talk turkey with her about that kind of thing. It's still not really natural for me, but I'm working to understand and accept my limits. Some 'scary' things I just accept without chiding myself. Others I recognize what to do right away, or figure it out sooner than I used to.

Good news! Finally order my window treatments today No surprise that I couldn't get exactly what I originally ordered several months ago, but close enough to it. I used to be a regular customer (JC Penny) years ago. To make todays transaction easier (yes appease the kind, helpful sales clerk), I applied then made the purchase via their credit card. Between a half off sale and percentage off from credit card, saved about $800. I still have to find curtain rods for two window cause they are too narrow for what the store offers. Also have to decide what to do about kitchen since I don't want what is considered 'typical' and the window is too short for much of anything else out there. Product choices and limitations have changed so much. But at least something is coming to enhance that one area in my home that has been bugging the out of me.

Later

butterflybabe, when I first started my job as a condominium property agent, I had to learn FAST about standing my ground in a test of wills, since for the first time I had a staff of male resident managers to keep in line as well as a dozen condominium boards. Some of those caretakers were older men and had definite ideas about taking orders from a skinny woman in a business suit.

The way I did it was to put on a different personality, someone who was afraid of no-one. That person ran the monthly board meetings and the employee discipline, and the annual condominium General Meetings. She was one tough cookie and took no guff from anyone. I just let her take over when she was needed. And then I'd heave a sigh of relief when I got back to my car to go home.



That huge west-coast storm is affecting us all the way up here, too. Today it's just rain, but apparently tomorrow it's going to get wild.

pro nfl football and chores.

I could use some cat advice.

We've put in our names to adopt another cat from the SPCA.

Our Willow doesn't get nearly enough attention from us because of the medical situation around here, and she's always been friendly to other cats (and eve dogs) when she's seen them on one of her walks. We've applied to adopt a nine-year old male cat whose owners have had to surrender him because their new landlord won't accept pets. The Dude needs a home and we want him. He has successfully lived with another cat, so he seems ideal, but of course we have to make sure the introduction goes well from the start.

I've read and watched all of the SPCA literature about introducing a new cat but I was wondering if anyone else has a few pointers. I want it to go well.

Cats are tricky. If there is any way to let them see each other without being able to interact right away, you can let them get used to each other. Sometimes a baby gate works well. Even if they have a tiff or two, they may be able to figure out the pecking order pretty quickly. What a great idea, by the way!

I have to go out tomorrow and get a second litter box and a scratching post anyway, so I guess I could get a gate. Willow is a very determined cat, though. She is not easily discouraged when she wants something. A closed door is a challenge, not a barrier.

I think it might be easier for the new cat and me to sleep in one room, with the litter box in the attached bathroom. He could live in there and we could slowly introduce them through a crack, like the SPCA video suggests. I could put the baby gate across the bedroom door a couple of times a day and see how they do through it.

John seemed leery about this at first but once he saw the picture and read the description all of a sudden he was very keen on adopting "The Dudemeister."

Of course all of this is moot if The Dude (his name -- presumably from The Big Lebowski?) is already taken or if they decide we aren't the right people.

Congrats to you hagatha. I hope you get him!

One female cat we brought in, we were able to keep distance the way Draclvr suggested due to a door with glass panels but that was mostly because she was scared.

One male I took from a co-worker friends step daughter when she was moving out of state was just left in his open taxi until he was comfortable coming out. The male cat that I had at the time got under the covers with me when I went to bed and he was trembling next to my legs. I felt really bad for him but when the newcomer stood up against the bed and peaked over, I couldn't help but bust out laughing. They just worked things out by themselves in the end. Same with when we brought these other 4 in.

In the end though, I still feel guilty sometimes about bringing all those other cats in on him.

We were posting at the same time. If it was me, I would give more attention to the existing cat than the new one so she knows you're not replacing her.

Well, my girl has made friends with other animals, when she was younger.

The first one was a Westie who got walked at a particular time in our old condo complex. She would wait by the road for the dog, and then they would touch noses and sit together. The other was a male cat that lived next door to our friend's house in Vancouver. We were there for six weeks for John's chemo, and every day when I walked our Willow he would come over and the two of them would hang out, play the best they could , considering that she was leashed, and generally enjoyed each other's company. I hope she hasn't changed too much in the intervening years.

A good Sunday morning one and all: croissants fresh from the oven this morning with blackcurrant and sloe gin jam plus strong fresh coffee of course.

I agree with Drac: cats are very territorial so that separate space at first is often a must, although hopefully they will eventually at least tolerate each other rather than killing each other and/or leaving home!

We have had up to five co-existing successfully in a fairly small house, but they had mostly been introduced as kittens which may have helped: however I remember one kitten which we had to keep separate from a one year old for a couple of weeks for fear of it being seriously attacked.

I suspect that mixing males may be more of a challenge than mixing females, but my experience on that front was limited to a pair of male kittens from the same litter who got along fine.

Good luck...

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning. Hagatha, good luck with your new cat I love the name.

Good morning everyone ... I see we are set today in the Break Room with treats and drink

Hope you get your kitty Hagatha

Have a great day everyone

I suspect that the Dude is ours.

He'd only been up for adoption for 12 hours when I saw the listing, so we were first in line anyway.

Even though the SPCA is closed until Tuesday, I got a call today and talked with the woman at the shelter for a good half hour. Dude is apparently very sweet, not the boldest of cats, and is definitely not an Alpha. Perfect.

The SPCA are very thorough. Apparently we're still in their records from when we lived in West Vancouver, which is when we adopted our Willow. They have her adoption on record, and the picture that we sent them a week after we got her.

We're both very excited to meet the Dude.

Hope the link works:

https://adopt.spca.bc.ca/pets/242443/?from_search=true

It works hagatha. Good luck to you. I hope his transition goes smoothly!

Dude looks like a wonderful cat.

Dude looks like quite the fellow

Dude looks like a Maine Coon. I highly recommend that cat breed. I have a Maine Coon at present and he is terrific, with many endearing qualities and a great personality.

hagatha, Dude is a real handsome cat!

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang, colts vs 49ers.

Oh, my! The Dudemeister is SO gorgeous! I always love a good tabby. When will you get to meet him?

I also think he's a Maine Coon. He has that look. We meet him on Tuesday at noon, when the shelter opens. I'll pick up some stuff tomorrow -- an extra litter box and a heated bed and a scratching post.

I feel so awful for his previous people, though. They couldn't find a rental that allows pets. I can't imagine having to give up a loved pet that way.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today. Hagatha, the Dude is gorgeous.

We have what is being described as an "historic" storm today, extremely high winds and drenching rain. I'm sure we'll be losing our power at some point. Unfortunately I have to go out. The wind is strong enough that driving on the highway will be interesting. And my poor hummingbirds will have a terrible time getting to their feeders.

I've been watching weather where you are and it definitely looks ugly. We had severe weather all around us late yesterday. They had been predicting 80 mpg winds and tornados. When I went out to the barn at 7:00 pm, there was lightning all around and the sky was constantly lit up. But all we got right here was a little rain and the wind blew all night. You KNOW something strange is going to happen with the weather when it's 80° on October 24th!

Good morning everyone

Hagatha ... you be safe when out n about

Morning Connie ... have a great lunch

Sumatra coffee, Scottish breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water for the Break Room.

It's Moanday Monday ... let's get this week started!!

Definitely a dark coffee morning this morning, Soot.

My venturing out is to pick up medications and some stuff for the (hopefully) new kitty -- all necessities, so there's no avoiding it. Fortunately, driving across town here means 15 minutes and almost no traffic -- one of the benefits of living in a one-horse town.

Draclvr, we had a very warm day two days ago, unseasonably so. It was kind of like the eye of the storm -- between one big storm and this one. I almost feel as though we should have wooden shutters to lower over our big plate-glass windows, to batten down the hatches, so to speak, as in the storm scene from Key Largo.

same thing and grocery shopping.

Hagatha, he is obviously one cool Dude!

We knew someone who had a Maine Coon which would only eat fresh jumbo prawns: if those were not served up on time every evening, he would shred the newspaper and leave the result in his feeding bowl, often also trashing other domestic items...

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning Connie, Lex, Family, Hagatha and hopefully the "Duke"

Tootin Toosday to one and all

Brought a large pot of Bold roast coffee this morning along with an English breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water to go with Connie's treats.

Have a wonderful day

Good morning all.

Yes, we find out about the Dude soon.

My Willow know something is up because obviously there's a different energy in the house. It must be a good energy, because she's acting really bouncy and talkative and very, very playful. Also John has been singing for the last three days, so he's obviously looking forward to the new addition. And if we don't get the Dude, there are lots of other mature kitties out there who need homes (we don't want a kitten).


EDIT: So Dude is home and under the bed in our second bedroom, but has already checked out the room and bathroom and seems reasonably happy.

As for our Willow, I presented her with Dude's scent towel, and she rubbed her entire body along it twice. A good start I think.

same thing and nachos and cupcake, for tomorrow, everything mild.

Definitely sounds like a good start hagatha. It sounds like they will be getting along fine. Let us know when Dude comes out from hiding.

Can't wait for more Dude and Willow stories!

Good to know that Dude is home. I will stay tuned for updates.

Yay!! Congrats hagatha!

Dude will be fine. He came out for a lengthy head scratch and is now sitting in the window. He's obviously an affectionate little guy.

Good Morning everyone. Dark Sumatra coffee and English Breakfast tea are waiting for you all. Hagatha I'm so glad you are giving Dude a happy home. We have a pet rescue for cats here that matches up senior cats with senior adults....they even have a program that gives a cat to a senior and pays for vet costs, food and litter. If the senior is no longer able to care for the cat they will take him back and find it another home.

We are in the middle of a "NorEaster" here...hopefully we don't lose power. We are expecting very high winds up to 70 miles per hour in some areas.
and we already have 4 inches of rain.

Hope you all enjoy your day!

Good morning all: great to hear that Dude and Willow are getting along and that the household is alive with the sound of music (if the quality of John's singing can be so described...)

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Hagatha, I'm glad all is well with the Dude. Gerry, stay safe in the NorEaster. Dinner and karaoke tonight with friends.

Good morning, all.

Dude is now hiding in the window behind the curtains but he will approach for head scratches and a purring session as long as it's me. He seems more wary of my husband. Given how his old family were living (two adults and two indoor cats zipped in a tent) all summer, he may have some negative associations with men.

The SPCA pays for a vet visit during the first week after adoption, but I'm going to request a postponement until some trust has been built.

I'm actually not worried about how Willow will behave. She's acting strangely...adult. Calm.

Lex, John has a fine voice. Fortunately.



The horrible weather continues. I was hoping or a break so that I can prune back our Hydrangea, which has gotten far too floppy.

All sounds very promising to me, hagatha. Great Stuff !!

He's out and about now. They're talking through the door. So cute.

Awwww .... Lovely !!

Hagatha, welcome to the Dude! How wonderful for all involved!

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning everyone

Brought a pot of Folger's Breakfast Blend coffee, Scottish breakfast tea and bottles of Fiji water for the break room.
Have a wonderful Thursday!

Drippy, cold fall day here. I have a German blend coffee for the break room this morning. Perfect to start off the day. Just downloaded Growbot from Steam and it feels like a good gaming day. Bowling tonight. Have a great Thursday, Everyone!

Rain here, too. Miserable. I have to go out for a few essentials -- the most important being a cat brush -- and then we're going to chill for the rest of the day, maybe watch some Netflix and order a pizza.

Lunch out today, which is always fun, with maybe a bit of gaming sqeezed in before hand.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Going to the Eagles tonight to finish setting up for the Halloween Party tomorrow. I'm going as my favorite a witch.

T.G.I.F. Good Morning Everyone

Brought a pot of 'Dusk to Donuts' coffee, a pot of breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water in the Break Room.

Yes, rain is drippy, wet and some times blustery but it's a must for all outside.

Have a wonderful Friday

Blustery day here. Think a bit of grocery shopping is on the list, some bookkeeping, some laundry, some reading, some eating. Hope you all have a great day

Not much happening here.

We're off to buy a baby gate in preparation for the face-to-face cat introductions, hopefully next week. Willow is dying to meet her new housemate. She's still showing only interest, no aggression.

The little Dudelebug is absolutely adorable. He has clearly been much-loved, and I'm very sad for his people, having to give him up.

Good luck hagatha, but honestly, I would just open the door and let them do their thing.

I hope it goes well, hagatha

should be just fine Hagatha

I'm sure it will be fine, but slow, but sure is always better!

Willow agrees with you 100%, but I promised the SPCA I would use their introduction methods.

I've "adopted" all of my cats in one way or another but never through the SPCA or any other animal organization and I don't know it I ever would. For them to decide if I'm going to be a good pet owner or not rubs against me. This doesn't mean I've never supported them though. In the past I was a fairly decent supporter of the Tree House Animal Foundation, no kill shelter, here in Chicago.

The SPCA checked us out pretty carefully when we adopted Willow 7 1/2 years ago, but this time they just looked us up in their database, confirmed that we were the people who adopted Willow, and that was really it. I think they were pretty happy to see a nine year old cat get adopted so quickly.

college football and world series and chores.

These places have VERY good reasons for making some rules and guidelines for things like introductions. I am very active in both the large animal rescue community and the dog and cat rescue community in this area. If you knew the number of animals who are brought back or given away and just dumped (in violation of a contract) when things don't go well, you would be shocked. The biggest group I'm part of had to finally stop allowing rehoming of pets on their page - the horror stories finally forced them to become very strict. Now everything must go through a rescue licensed with the state.

I have a feeling this introductory period with the gate is going to be short, hagatha!

Drac, I have one worry, and that is that Willow will be too exuberant. Even though her intentions seem pretty friendly, she is a big, strong, cat -- like, really big. Dude is pretty shy and only medium-sized, and he is definitely not going to be the dominant one, plus he's still traumatized.

We'll try putting Willow in the other bedroom for a couple of hours tomorrow to let him roam the house a little bit with me. He seems to trust me now, so we'll see how that goes -- I think if he had a better sense of where he is he'd feel a bit more secure. Plus, he's definitely getting bored cooped up in the one room.

But we'll try the gate soon.

I wouldn't be shocked Draclvr. I am aware of their supposed reasons. But all of their rules are just not for ME! And personally, I think that if some idiot person wants to do something bad with their pet, they're going to do it regardless of that "contract" and that nobody will be the wiser.

hagatha, I think letting him scope out the rest of the house is a good idea. Then he'll know where he can hide if he chooses to hide for awhile.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping is on the agenda today. Halloween Party at the Eagles tonight.

We have a Halloween Party on Sunday.

One of our neighbours has arranged a party for all the neighbourhood kids to show up so they don't have to go door to door. Our neighbourhood is quite rural as we're at the exact end of the City and beyond out street is nothing but wilderness. Also, our resident bear Sidney, has not yet hibernated, ad kids carrying candy might be too tempting. He's never been aggressive, preferring to loll around in people's gardens with a belly full of stolen apples, but he is a bear.

I have to cook a vegan curry for our newly-vegan neighbour, who is coming over for lunch to watch soccer.

The cats were talking to each other again through the door. I opened it a crack, and though Dude chirped and cruised on past, he wouldn't actually come to the door. He's a talker, has a little comment for everything.

Good morning everyone

Dark roast Sumatra coffee, Scottish Breakfast tea and bottled Fiji water in the Break Room.

Getting ready for the Trick or Treaters 2night

I'm looking forward to hearing more on how the introductions go, hagatha! I'm so glad to hear you're doing it the right way and taking the time to make sure the outcome is a good one... I have no problems with abiding with these things as the well-being of the animal is the foremost goal for everyone involved.

Happy Weekend All!

Yes. It would break my heart to have to return Dude to the SPCA for rehoming. We already love him.

pro nfl football, world series, and chores.

Doesn't take long, does it, hagatha!

No.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. The Halloween party was a big success last night.

Good day Connie

I brought a large pot of bold Sumatra coffee and tub of bottled Fiji water in ice

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang, cowboys vs Dallas Cowboys QB Dak Prescott (calf) inactive for game against Minnesota Vikings. world series.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today. Meeting at the Eagles tonight.

Good morning, all. This morning looks like a painting -- dead calm and misty, with the water shining like silver.

It's getting cold, so it's time to pull out the heated hummingbird feeders, give them a good clean and get them outside.

Hagatha, got a kitty update for us! How is the extended introduction going?

Draclvr, I think things are going well. Dude is getting really bored and demanded to be let out of the bedroom last night. We gated the top of the stairs and he shot upstairs, saw Willow behind the gate, and retreated to the lower floor, where he just explored calmly, no real fear at all. Later we opened his bedroom door a crack. Willow put her paw through the door a few times, and he cruised past, talking, and then sat in a Sphinx pose about three feet away. They're both really calm. I think we'll move things forward now with another gate introduction, only this time giving him control of the house with Willow in the upstairs bedroom behind the gate.

He's pretty confident now. He trusts me for certain, and comes when I call him as much as any cat does. He has a little churring noise he makes repeatedly. It's hilarious -- a running commentary on the world around him.

I think the key is getting Dude comfortable in his surroundings. I'm told by the rescues that so many people don't take that step and if the cat is timid, any intimidation by the resident cat can set things back by days and sometimes weeks because the new cat doesn't know where to feel safe.

Exactly. I want to let him explore the house unfettered. He's already done it once, the whole house with Willow shut away. He fast-walked through the whole of the upstairs checking everything out without hesitating for a second. I had to laugh when he found one of Willow's well--licked catnip toys, though. He stopped his tour to give it a huge head rub for about a minute before resuming. It was so unexpected and silly in the middle of what was likely a stressful situation.

How funny! He is getting familiar with his new surrounds and spreading his own scent around. He will feel safe there when he and Willow finally get to figure things out between them.

same thing.

So as I sit here, there is a flimsy barrier across the tp of the stairs that either cat could literally walk around. Dude is on a step near the top, lounging, blinking at Willow, and talking to her. Very polite. An accomplished Dude.

Willow is completely nonplussed. Not hissing, not puffed up. Just...confused. She's stopped staring, and looked away and yawned, but she's not sure what to do. (Eventually he went downstairs and she accepted a pat with her tail up, so I guess she's not all that upset.)

So interesting that it's Dude who is taking the lead. All of a sudden today he's Mr. Cool. Not afraid of anything.

I love this! This is what happens when you take the time for introductions to allow Dude to know where he's safe so his personality can come out and Willow knows you still love her.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Hagatha, I'm happy Dude is getting along so well.

Yes, we're cautiously hopeful. We'll do the same thing with the gate until Willow relaxes completely.

Hagatha: Interesting you mention about dealing with condo agent. We had an annual budget approval assoc meeting last week. Price increase for new lawn care company meant a higher than usual monthly fee increase. When it came time to do formal acceptance and approval of the budget, the same resident that gave us a hard time about how to count the votes earlier this year, insisted that a full board agreement was not needed, just those acting as pres and vice-pres. As she did before, the agent simply went along with it to appease the guy. Easier than to take time and energy to fight him. Like you, I'm always glad to find someone whose comfortable dealing with that kind of situation. Also, if I read your post right, you're providing temporary housing for a cat. I applaud for for that willingness and energy. If a circumstance presented itself, I suppose I might consider it, but, mostly I shy away from it for emotional reasons. Those darn animals just eventually pull at your heartstrings.

Well, government keeps trying to get more money from me. Spent 2 years fight (via my CPA) with IRS about tax funds they insisted I owed but didn't. Twice, it was a 'coding' error on their part. No real surprise there. Now it's the SSA, which claims they've overpaid me since I retired in 2019. It's a long story, but suffice to say, because of their error, I've gotten $200 more a month than I was 'supposed' to; but they're asking me to repay way more than that. No way I'm going to just send check for it. Can't get in touch with local SSA office; need appt and can't get ahold of anyone by phone. Recently learned I may have found someone who understands these things. I'll know for sure on Saturday.

Sunday, when I walked my dog about 5 pm, I was surprised to see a few kids out trick-or-treating. The parents had recently moved to the suburb which is near northwest of Chicago. It really was a nice day to do it. Told the parents I had not thing to offer. They'd heard the some from other residents. Talk about a 'blast of the past' sort of thing.

After the assoc meeting that I mention above, which was zoomed, I turn around to find my dog on the couch. I was shocked! He hasn't done that in months. The daycare gal said she'd playfully chasing him to increase his exercise. I had to run to the restroom. When I got back, he was off the couch. But I sat on it and he tried again. He approached; front paw on but back legs couldn't get high enough and he knew it, so quickly backed away. Urged him to try again, but he went back to bed. I can tell he misses being able to lie next to me. I miss it too.

Connie, I was a condo Property Agent for many years here in British Columbia.

I cannot imagine a scenario in which it is legal for only two or three members of the Board to make decisions for the entire complex, especially in the case of the Annual Budget. It is likely a serious violation of whatever governing legislation you have in your State.

In BC the entire ownership votes on the budget. A majority approval is required. The property agent is not allowed to simply accept violations of the governing legislation because of one bullying owner. Part of the job is dealing with exactly that kind of person. If you can't do that, you cannot be a Condo Agent.

Your agent is incompetent at the very least. In BC an agent who fails so completely to uphold their fiduciary duty to a client would have their license suspended and their employer's Agent's license could also be in jeopardy for allowing it.

A letter of complaint to the company she works for, outlining the issues, might be a good first step.

Also the governing legislation probably outlines a complaint mechanism for owners to follow in instances like this one. Here in BC the first step is a mediation, and the mediator's decision is binding on all parties. Of course, it's probably a different process where you are, but there probably is one.

I always encouraged my clients to read and absorb the Strata Property Act, which is the governing legislation here in BC. I would strongly suggest that you obtain a copy of, and familiarize yourself with, your State's applicable legislation so that you understand the rights and duties of Owners, the Board, and the Agent. It's important for every condo owner to do this.

Such excellent advice, hagatha. I was a little horrified that anyone would suggest only two people have the final vote on something just to avoid dealing with a difficult person.

Condo ownership can be great if you have a good Board and Agent. It can also be awful.

Dude now thinks he owns the house.

"Dude now thinks he owns the house. "

And what does Willow say to that ????

same thing. and chili for cooking class.

Willow has been hard to read, honestly. She isn't as friendly as I thought she would be from past behaviour. She mostly just stared at him last night. They're separated by a baby gate when they're both roaming around; he's downstairs and she's upstairs. Today when he appeared behind the gate she puffed up her tail at him, but then sat beside the gate doing nothing at all. he went back downstairs, but clearly isn't too worried as he's lounging on the bed looking perfectly happy. I think things are fine for week one. We have a big enough house that we can keep this up for a while if we need to.

Good that you have plenty of space, hagatha.

Because certainly only you and your Husband will be able to judge when the time is right to allow that crucial meeting

Exactly!

I hope it doesn't take too long. The little guy is desperate to be upstairs with us.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight.

Good morning everyone .... anyone see Mike?

Bold Sumatra coffee and bottled Fiji water in the break room.

Willow & Dude
Happy Hump Day everyone

Are you able to "swap" their places, hagatha, so both get the chance to be with you ??

Oh, yes, Dude is in the downstairs bedroom and ensuite bathroom, which is really my room and has all my stuff. It's about 400 square feet so it's not cramped. We take turns sleeping down there with him. And Willow always goes for a long nap in the upstairs bedroom in the afternoon, so we let the little guy roam the house. The problem is that although Willow has not been mean to him, or hissed, or growled, he is a bit scared of her. She's a big, looming presence and hasn't been polite about the eye contact. I know it's partly for show, because she also approaches the gate with her tail up sometimes but he will retreat away from the gate a few feet if he sees her. We got them both relaxed last night with wand toys so they were both playing at the same time on either side of the gate. We're just going to keep on the way we're going now.

It'll work out. It has to, because there no way either of us could part with Dude now.

I need coffee this morning, and I managed to break the glass container on my coffee grinder just now, so it's off to Amazon for a replacement.

Well I don't think you could do better than that, hagatha. And well done you and your Husband for going "all the way" to accomodate them both
And I will certainly continue to wish you all the best in the matter.

Pets are SO precious

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning Boomers!

Wishing you all a grand Thursday.
Brought a pot of Maple Bacon coffee this morning for the Break Room ... take care

More rain. We're now fully into winter, which means grey skies and rain. And more rain. And then it rains for another five months.

Time to clean and put up those heated hummingbird feeders. We've realized that because they're heated with a light bulb, the hummers come earlier and leave later and so their feeding time is extended. The feeders are little beacons of light in the dark sky.

Got RAIN, hagatha?! LOL!

So...Dude is the dominant cat.

He's half Willow's size, but socially adept. He wanted up, he wanted over that gate, and so he jumped it. Willow puffed up a bit and followed him. He jumped into the window sill and turned his back on her. No hissing, no nonsense, he just decided he wants to be up here with three of us, and he's doing it. Willow stared at his back for a bit, then turned away and came for treats, tail up.

We'll keep an eye on them and separate them if there's any BS, but for now...détente.

Great !!!! That sounds VERY promising, hagatha !!!! So for more of that

Woo Hoo Hoo Hagatha ... little steps ... or a big jump

I had a feeling one or the other was going to take matters in their own hands at some point! The time you took to introduce them slowly and under your control is exactly why this introduction is NOT going to be a fail!! Plus you will remain in the good graces of the ASPCA!

Congrats hagatha! I totally respect you for sticking to the contract that they put upon you, but I have always had great results in a much quicker time with the 8 cats we have brought into an already cat occupied house! Cats are not dumb at all and usually can always figure things out for themselves, in their own way and time.

She's asleep in front of the fire, and he's exploring the one room that has been off-limits until now.

You're much braver than I am! I've had visions of claws and fur flying.

That never actually happened during any introductions that I can recall, but it can happen later in the future anyway.

I've had them go both ways - totally depends on the personalities involved. One of these resulted in a VERY expensive visit to the vet, so I've never done the "just dump them together and let them figure it out themselves" method again! These rescues know what they are doing and have these rules in place for very good reasons. Well done!!

Well, they ARE cats, after all.

same thing.

Of course it depends on the cats which is why I said "usually", but for the record, I never "dumped" any cats together. They were just not separated by doors (except the one previously mentioned and that was HER decision basically). She preferred to keep her distance until she felt comfortable and we respected that. The door was usually cracked open though so she could come out to eat and use the potty. One set of rules does not always apply to everyone. The mother cat with her children and a different set of brother/sister cats we had one time were the ones that quarreled most.

"Well, they ARE cats, after all." Yes, and people who share living quarters fight also, not just cats.

Anyway, what we have is two cats sleeping about fifteen feet from one another.

And that is purrfect!

In my experience, leaving cats to work out their own territorial boundaries and routines within a house usually works out fine, perhaps after an initial confrontation to establish some sort of pecking order, and it sounds as if Willow and Dude have plenty of room to avoid each other if they so wish: in the wild, most animals (including big cats) will avoid an actual fight unless there is absolutely no alternative, so at worst domestic cats usually only engage in a little prickly posturing when first introduced (not unlike some humans of my acquaintance...)


And good morning to one and all - strong coffee, and porridge followed by a toasted and buttered crumpet are on today's breakfast menu for me, and it looks like possible weather for planting tulip bulbs and perhaps even some wild flower seeds.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Rain and Gusty winds today and part of tomorrow. Good day to hibernate and play games if we don't lose power.

Lex, with the word "usually" emphasized, I had a very expensive vet bill when a new cat attacked my older cat in the house. Several hundred bucks for stitches and antibiotics because cat wounds are VERY prone to infection.

My garlic has shipped, so today will be getting the bed tilled up and ready for planting. I just finished working up the last of the cloves and dehydrating into dried minced garlic from last year's crop.

Strong coffee, to be sure -- and yes, there is some posturing.

Hello Boomers, hope all is well with you.

Sitting quietly here with hubby, he on his laptop, me on mine. It's quite chill here today but we're bundled up and feeling cosy. Yesterday was our 49th wedding anniversary, again spent quietly, and we had a visit from our youngest son. We don't get to see him as much as the others as he works long hours and most weekends so it was lovely we got the chance. Next year will be our Golden wedding, God willing. I can't believe it, where have the years gone?

I managed to get most of my Christmas shopping done over the last week, except for a couple of small things. I wasn't really in the mood but thought I would just get on with it, rather than leave it to the last minute. That just leaves the food shopping to attend to later. I don't know what's happening here for Christmas this year, I have a feeling everyone will be staying home. That's okay, I think I would prefer a nice quiet day, just the two of us. Hubby hasn't been too well recently. I wish the appointment would come through for him to have the colonoscopy done so that we had some idea of where he's at.

Could I ask for prayers, please, for my nephew Joseph? He was hospitalised with Covid and had quite the time of it. A scan showed extensive blood clots on his lungs and he was on oxygen therapy alongside other treatments. He did well enough initially and they discharged him home. He was home less than a week then had to be rehospitalised with a collapsed lung. That was around two weeks ago. He is still on oxygen therapy with morphine for pain. We are all so worried about him.

Time to go and see what's for dinner. Enjoy the rest of your day, everyone.

Much love,

Mary

Mary, Happy Anniversary to you and hubby. Prayers for your nephew, hubby, and you. Lots of Positive vibes and Hugs too.

Happy Anniversary Mary ... yes, prayers for Joseph, hubby, you and family winging their way to you

T.G.I.F. everybody

I live for strong coffee

college football and chores.

Good morning everyone

Large pot of bold Sumatra coffee for the Break Room.

The weekend has arrived and it's time for project, chores and R&R

A strong cup of Chai first and then I'm diving head first into that coffee, Soot.

There was a serenade in my room early this morning, and I'm not sure which singer was responsible, but since there are no signs of a kerfuffle overnight and Dude is King of the Scratching Post Platform and slept there all night, I think it's time I started closing my door again. I love my cats, but not THAT much.

LOL, hagatha! Has Dude started warming up to your husband yet?

Oh, yes, Dude is fine with both of us. He's very sweet. He doesn't want lap time, just likes to be in the same room with us, and he loves his brush.

The cats are okay together except -- and this is a big one-- Willow simply cannot leave him alone to eat, even if they're 25 feet apart. She just cannot leave it alone. Even if I take his food downstairs she follows us and he won't eat if she's standing there. She is a chow hound, so I guess that's the one behaviour we have to work on. Otherwise they hang out in the living room with no issues. Dude just ignores her, for the most part.

pro nfl football,, and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning.

Buddy Supper at the American Legion tonight. The Auxiliary hosts this every year to honor all our veterans, past and present, with a turkey and dressing dinner. It plays off the old WW I song, My Buddy. I roasted two turkeys yesterday and am making my dressing in the crock pot today.

Good morning everyone

Sumatra coffee for the Break Room

Have fun this morning Connie and tonight Draclvr

There's nothing nicer than a full turkey dinner. We haven't really done the whole Thanksgiving thing for a long time, being just the two of us for so long.

We're just having a nice peaceful, rainy morning with a pot of coffee and scones.

EDIT: Holy smokes! There was a tornado in Vancouver. We never have them here. Ever.

Wow Hagatha ... I am thinking climate change storms will be bad for everyone

Soot, research and tracking is showing they already ARE bad for everyone.

Fortunately it didn't come anywhere near us here, but we're getting major winds tonight, I think. At least we know for sure our house doesn't leak.

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang, rams vs titans.

Good Morning Everybody. I hope each of you has a good week! I am just off to now.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today.

Good morning everyone

Bold Sumatra coffee and bottled Fiji water in the Break Room.
Take care and stay safe!

Rain, rain, rain.

I only have to venture out for a few minutes. We're out of Haagen Dasz , and milk for my cappuccinos. Both are absolutely essential around here.

EDIT: Oh, darn. The wind pushed my car door open and banged it into a post. Fortunately no damage except for some paint, but I literally couldn't hold the door back, the wind was so strong.

same thing.

Wind can be quite nasty hagatha!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Good morning Connie OldBroad Family Hagatha and one 'n all

Costa Rica Morning Bold coffee and bottled Fiji water in the Break Room today
Tootin Toosday everybody ... have fun, enjoy and stay safe

We woke up to a lovely morning but it's clouding over again.

This morning we had two cats sitting a foot from one another, both totally relaxed. Willow now wants to play and is happily lying on her back around Dude; Dude is a bit skeptical but coming around too. However, we have relative tranquility and harmony. After only two weeks I think we have a win!

Woot! Three cheers for the win!

Sounds like an ABSOLUTE "win" to me, hagatha, and well done to you and your Husband for bringing it about !!

same thing, and cooking class we are making crab cakes, and homemade mashed potatoes, corn casserole.

Ooh. Crab cakes! Yum.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight.

Good to hear that Dude and Willow are contented in each other's company and of course in that of their staff, hagatha and the Spousal Unit!

Here is another bit of heart warming animal/human interaction https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GaKtI4QfhH0

Oh Lex, that was sooo sweet!!!!

Can you really ever have enough animal videos?

We have had a setback in that Dude rejected Willow's rather clumsy offer of friendship and she's now back to being a bit of a ratbag, but they're still pretty good.

same thing.

If I wanted to live dangerously, I could make some sort of sexist comment about Willow's behaviour...

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Mani/Pedi today, then lunch out with a friend.

Good morning everyone

Bold Sumatra Reserve this morning for the Break Room

Have a wonderful day!

In the US, today is Veteran's Day. The WW I Armistice went into effect on the 11th hour of the 11th day of the 11th month in 2018. So we honor all our veterans, past and present, today and thank them for their service.

A woman scorned?

It's all good. He's playing hard to get, but in the end my beautiful miniature panther will win him over.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Snacks and karaoke with friends tonight.

We've got that incredible November hush that descends on us at this time of year. The float planes are mostly idle, even the most die-hard sports fishers have given up for the season, and the only sounds at all are from the occasional tug boats hauling log booms and barges. The humpbacks have mostly headed back south to wherever they go -- down to Baja or Hawaii for breeding -- and the big tour boats are docked for the winter. The waterfront fishing lodges have put their docks and guide boats away and the tourists have all gone home. The only sound I can hear right now is the fan on my laptop, and a snoring cat.

Every time I think I might want to move back to the city, I remind myself that there isn't one second of peace and quiet like we have here.

Exactly why I live in the country too, hagatha!

I can only imagine the peace and quiet you're enjoying Hagatha .. nothing like it at all.

T.G.I.F. good Friday one and all

I brought a light afternoon blend of coffee for the break room:D

college football and chores.

Good morning, all.

We actually had some sun yesterday so I did some outdoor chores; notably cleaning mink AND raccoon droppings from our deck. The animals tend to use the deck as a path to the water, and so they've started using it as a latrine, too. I'm getting some motion-sensor lights put in but in the meantime I've got some pretty foul-smelling deterrent pellets spread around out there. Then I did some general de-sliming of concrete so delivery people don't slip on the property, and cleaned out the driveway drains. I have a very sore shoulder this morning!

After that we all had a final fire down by the beach for burgers and hot dogs.

pro nfl football,, and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. District meeting at our Eagles today. Dinner out tonight, then going to see James Brown in concert.

Good morning and Happy Sunday everyone

I brought a pot of Hammer Down - Bold Roast coffee this morning for the Break Room.

Wow Connie ... James Brown as in 'one of the Kings of Soul?' ... where is the concert tonight?

Have a wonderful Sunday everyone

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang, cheifs vs raiders, falcons lost to cowboys, seatte with russell wilson vs green bay with aaron rogers.

God morning , Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. It was James Taylor and Jackson Brown I went to see last night. I keep getting the names jumbled, the concert was Great. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today, meeting at the Eagles tonight.

James Taylor and Jackson Brown? Fabulous!

same thing.

Glad you enjoyed the concert Connie

Have a wonderful evening everyone

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Danish please! Nothing on the agenda today connie? I always look forward to hearing what your day will be. My days are almost all the same - sit in front of my computer .

Have a good day all!

I had a back injection today. Probably NOT the kind of uplifting and interesting to hear about, right, oldbroad! I'd rather hear about Connie's fun than that too. But on the up side, I did crank out close to 2 miles of walking by parking as far away from the buildings as I could get at the Pain Clinic and the two stops I had to make on the way home.

Draclvr, I am interested in all people and all that they do. I still hope to get myself out and walking regularly at some point.

But some things are more fun to hear about than others, eh!

Not much fun at this end, either. A trip to the hospital for John's blood test, and then home -- and then I collided with an exuberant Dude and now he's so scared of me he runs away in terror every time he sees me. I hope it doesn't stay that way, because he was really starting to trust us and even enjoy Willow's company.

I'm pretty sure he'll be fine hagatha!

I hope so. He's such a little 'fraidy cat. And we were all having so much fun.

Our heat pump has been installed. We're fortunate that one of the installers is also a neighbour, so the install went very smoothly. We'll be turning it on soon. I'll be interested to see how quiet it is -- our master bedroom is right above what was the furnace room, and the old furnace was so noisy I had to turn the heat way down at night to stop it from coming on. The fan for the heat pump, which is installed where the old furnace stood, should be much quieter. I'm told I won't hear it at all.

same thing, and cooking class we are making tacos.

I agree with oldbroad... it may take Dude a while to come around, but he will finally miss you!

Give Dude time and he'll come back to you Hagatha

Have a wonderful evening

I've just been looking at the extent of the damages caused by our recent torrents of rain. Most of our highways are completely cut off by mudslides and flooding. And in some cases the highway is just...gone, and the ground underneath completely washed away. We weren't affected where we are, but my planned two-day visit to Victoria is off, since the Malahat portion of the highway from hereis now impossible to travel.

I have no idea how long it will take to repair all of this, since in some cases entire stretches of highway will have to be re-engineered, given that the ground they were built on is now utterly gone. I'm guessing that in some cases it will be years before those stretches of highway re-open.

My goodness - I had no idea! How horrible - dreadful heat and fires this summer and now this. What a mess.

And of course when there's a huge mudslide on a major highway, people vanish. It's going to be an awful tragedy. I think Washington State is in a similar situation.

Is this anywhere near you?

Horses Wrangled Through Floodwaters

Fortunately, Merritt is a long way from us here. Merritt is in the Interior of BC and we're on Vancouver Island. But a lot of BC is in trouble.

All of the highways out of Vancouver, on the coastal Mainland, are now flooded or washed away. Nobody can drive in or out. The main highway East is a river.

Communities like Abbotsford just outside of Vancouver in the Lower Mainland area have flooded badly. All the way north up the Fraser Valley small towns are flooded out and some evacuated, and the Coquihalla highway, the only other way north, is washed away in places. The Interior of BC is similarly hit -- Merritt being one of those towns. It's a blue-collar working town and a lot of people just lost everything.

The southern end of Vancouver Island is also flooding in places, and Victoria's only highway out is impassable at the moment. We are in the central part of Vancouver Island, which hasn't been hit so hard, plus our highway is on high ground so we're okay. The local river here is on a flood warning, though, because we have a huge hydro dam upriver. It's a brand new Hydro facility, built to withstand earthquakes, so it's stable and we'll be fine, but they are releasing a lot more water than normal, and the local hiking trails up the river are closed.

The Province is probably going to call for a State of Emergency.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels. in the Break Room. Dinner and karaoke with friends tonight. Hagatha that's awful about the roads, hopefully they will be fixed sooner than later.

The "weather" disasters in Canada have been on the mainstream news here in the U.K., hagatha, and look absolutely devastating

I do hope you stay safe

We'll be fine here, thanks. We're well above our town's flood plain. The houses built right on the river might be in trouble, though.

But Dude is still running away from me. It's not getting any better, and it's been a day now.

And the "quiet" heat pump I was promised is much noisier than the one I checked out before I made my decision, the one I was assured mine would be comparable to. It works very well for heating, but it's beside the bedroom, so it was essential that it be as advertised. I'm really, really not up for a battle with a contractor right now, but I can't just leave it the way it is.

Ah, jeez, what a disappointment about the heat pump.

Hopefully Dude with come around... maybe a few treats?

Stay safe Hagatha, I'm worried about my daughter, she lives in Crofton.

My heart goes out to those who go through these "natural" disasters. I don't know how they do it.

That stinks about your heat pump hagatha.

I would not put pressure on Dude but maybe a little nonchalant coaxing with the wand toy?

No. Dude has hidden and we can't find him. It's been over 24 hours now. As soon as he sees me, he vanishes. It was all going so well, too.

same thing, i am sorry about dude, i hope he comes out for you.

Nope. He's still hiding and won't come out. I'm just heartbroken. He was so full of joy and so happy, and now this.

Well, don't give up hope hagatha. He probably won't want to live in hiding forever.

Maybe put his food in where you are?

I was calling him, and Willow came out of one of the bedrooms and got me. She knew where he was, hiding behind a curtain. I think she was sitting in there with him. I left him some food.

Baby steps! Maybe it will be Willow who brings him around.

It might at that. They have become real friends over the last week. It' been charming to watch.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

Coffee for me, and lots of it.

Woke up at 2 am and wrote an email to the heating contractor who installed the heat pump, outlining the emails I sent regarding my concerns about potential noise, detailing the steps we took to visit a home that had the allegedly same pump we would be getting, the assurances I was given by the contractor, and my dismay at discovering that I had been badly misled as to the noise level. Even the installers, his employees, expressed dismay at the level of noise coming from a pump that was supposed to be "whisper quiet."

The pump is so loud I can't have it on if I'm in my bedroom. We can hear it everywhere in the house. And I'm very worried it will disturb my neighbours.

Bit honestly, a legal fight with a contractor is the last thing I need right now, with the health problems we're dealing with here.

All I can say is Good Luck. I hope you can get some relief somehow.

Good for you. I hope they just resolve it for you... I remember when you started the whole process that noise was your main concern.

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room.

college football and chores.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping this morning. A Celebration of life for a friend this afternoon. Working the kitchen at the Eagles tonight.

Whew, made it to the weekend.

Oh by the way, weekends are my favorite part of the week - I get to hang out with WOM for most of the time

I brought a large Dark Roads pot of Sumatra for the break room and also bottled Fiji water for everyone to stay hydrated

It's time for chores, projects, music in the background, gardening, reading and time off for me.

Have a wonderful weekend everyone

Hello friends,

Sorry it's been so long. Got my covid booster on a Weds, felt like [blip] on Thurs, and much better on Fri. At least that's done. Crazy fall weather's been tough on me this year; woke up slightly dizzy one morning which lasted a couple of hours. Approaching holiday season is always a bit depressing for me. No longer have a lot of family stuff, which is okay in a way, but covid has curtailed getting together with other people I care about. I sincerely pray next year will be a lot better in more ways than one. The one really good thing that has gotten done, is getting 3 of my ugly old blinds replace with much nicer ones Have a few more to work on but the biggest eye sores are gone.

Hagatha, regarding your condo association comments. This is the first time I've been involved in that scenario. About a year before I joined the board, retirement caused a turnover in HMO reps. During my first year on the board, I was dissatisfied and disappointed with how slow the HMO rep (whom I'll refer to as 'Mary') was to get things done or to keep in communication with the board on a regular basis. The president was going to talk with the HMO about things not working out and requesting a different one, but he didn't do it fast enough, then never got the chance. I initiated an email board discussion in which I purposely did not include 'Mary' to find out the status of that issue. When one of the other board members (a gentleman in his 80s) replied, he erroneously included 'Mary'. Imagine my surprise when 'Mary' replied that she happened to get a copy of the email. The president then had a conversation with her. Apologies all around and her assurance that communication would improve and things would get done. Since then things have gotten better. In fact, I'm surprised we got as much heavily needed work done as we did. One contractors were hired, everything happened within a month or so. The other issue that has caused a lot of problems is the effect covid has had on everything. Prices are up, things move slower or very differently. When all is said an done, I'm surprised we got as much accomplished this year as we did. Problems with residents were dealt with and/or put on hold because the US government put a moratorium on evictions, which was recently lifted, we are moving forward with the process of evicting 2 residents who've not paid and/or refuse to follow association rules. Between the turn over in HMO reps, covid and new residents (mostly renters) moving in, a lot has gone by the wayside the last few years. At our request, 'Mary' doing to send out copies of all rules and regs to residents and landlord for the renters. She recently put out a schedule of days off and office closings to the end of the year, so I've a feeling that may not happen until next year. Everyone on the board are good neighbors and friends, so I'm happy about that. For what it's worth, 'Mary' informed us that our board is one of the nicest she's worked with. We do work well together; and perhaps since I'm the only female, periodicially, I'm able to get them to laugh.


My little Huey is doing fine. Still enjoys going to pay days, sleeps and eats a lot. We're both stiff and sore first thing in the morning.

If I don't get to chat again this week, you all have a safe and good Thanksgiving!!

pro nfl football,, and chores.

Butterflybabe, I'm glad things are slowly turning around at your Condo. Condos can be wonderful places to live if everyone does their part, but of course there are always the few who believe the bylaws don't apply to them. Being a Strata Property Agent was pretty darned rewarding most of the time, though.



So, British Columbia is now under a State of Emergency. Because all of the highways out of BC are literally broken, groceries and other supplies aren't getting through. Once again, people are panic-buying toilet paper and stores are rationing things like milk and eggs and, of course, toilet paper.

The latest is that gas is now rationed, so we can only buy 30 litres at a time. I was going to fill both of our vehicles this evening but the gas stations are all out. Both of our vehicles are about half-full, so we'll be okay for a while, but I'll have to be very careful not to use too much gas now, so that we have enough to get to appointments.

Some trucks are getting through, coming via the US and then back north up to Vancouver, so we'll be okay soon, but for the time being we're being asked to restrict travel -- not that we can really go anywhere anyway.

The one bright spot in my life right now is that not only has Dude re-emerged from his funk, he and Willow are actually playing together now. Of course the little stinkers are playing at night, in the living room, which is over my bedroom. But still, it's sweet and funny.

Hm, cats playing versus heat pump.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Breakfast out this morning.

With Dude it almost feels like every day is Groundhog Day, though. Each morning he has to get used to us all over again, for about 5 minutes. For some reason today I'm The Wicked Witch, though. He's very hyper sometimes. Since we have our free vet visit next week I'll have him checked for hyperthyroidism. Our last cat was hyperthyroid and it was pretty easy to manage.

I read about that State of Emergency and wondered how it was affecting you. I have an elderly cat with hyperthyroidism and it's easily managed with medication. My step-daughter has a cat with it and they irradiated his thyroid! It was quite pricey and I'd never heard of using that on a cat! I'd love to have a night camera on them to see what they do at night!

We're fortunately not really affected by the flooding. Gas is rationed, which is the biggest impact. There was a bit of panic-buying on Friday but yesterday the shelves were mostly full.

Our last cat had her thyroid removed when she was 8, and she was fine until she was 16, at which point she started to have medication. I do think that Dude is oddly hyper for a cat his age (9). He paces a lot in the evening. I can hear his little feet padding around and around. And when he paces, he calls.

So the heat pump was damaged in transit. It will need some work to get it functioning quietly, but it is the pump it was supposed to be.

I don't know it that's progress or not, but at least there might be a plan to fix or replace it.

court shows and even perry mason, and chores, starting with perry mason, america court with judge kevin ross, the people court, judge greg mathis, justice with judge mablean ,the verdict with judge hatchett, judge judy. and chore. for tomorrow, after carrie underwood sang, steelers vs chargers.

So, they knew the heat pump was damaged when they installed it? I hope you get a replacement and not just a repair job, or get some credit with the repair.

I wondered the same thing, oldbroad.

I don't think they knew the pump was damaged. Apparently there are these little magnetic bearings that often get jostled in transit. The fellow working on it right now, who works for the company who sold us the pump, is actually our friend and neighbour, and I know he'll getting it working perfectly for us. Otherwise the Christmas party will be awkward...

Well that sounds a little better then hagatha!

That's the way to do it !!

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Lunch and Netflix with a friend today.

Connie?

Sounds lie a nice day. What are you watching on Netflix, Connie?

same thing.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Hagatha, we are watching mostly Christmas movies right now.

We're having a rare beautiful day, so I'm off down to Comox for a Costco shopping session and maybe lunch somewhere if I can stand the dreaded Eating Alone, which I used to be comfortable with when I was working, but am no longer.

"The one bright spot in my life right now is that not only has Dude re-emerged from his funk, he and Willow are actually playing together now. Of course the little stinkers are playing at night, in the living room, which is over my bedroom. But still, it's sweet and funny."

Is all going well, hagatha ??

From the perspective of my husband's health, no. The chemo is doing its job but nothing ever seems to help with the pain and it's a constant now, never really goes away.

We just enjoy life as much as we can. Every day has its bright spots. The cats are now actively playing with each other, friendly ambushes and chasing, and that's always funny to watch. Dude's personality has really come out and he's a happy-go-lucky little guy, very friendly with us, and a real joy.

I hope your husband can continue to enjoy some of life's pleasures despite the constant pain hagatha.

As for the cats, YAY!!

Did you have your lunch out or decide against it? I've never been able to sit in a restaurant by myself.

same thing. in cooking class we are making easy chicken and broccoli casserole, and stuffing, and homemade mashed potatoes.

Great news about Dude Hagatha!

Have a great evening everyone

Oldbroad, in the end I decided on coffee and a pastry at my favourite place in Comox, which I've been missing. Comox is actually a very cool town, lots of nice places to eat and a lovely waterfront harbour where you can buy fish on the dock.

The only downside to Dude is that he is not only a chatterbox, which is cute, but he obviously trained his previous people to do what he wanted them to do by howling. Sometimes he does it when he wants Willow to chase him. We are all slowly weaning him of that by simply ignoring him when he does it, but once he gets going he can really work up a head of steam. Eventually he stops and comes upstairs to see why we haven't responded. We'll get there.

Usually when my cats start making that kind of racket they're waiting for someone to talk to them. If we talk they stop howling. I kind of like when they do it. I think it's funny. I had two cats that actually sounded like they were saying *hello* (loudly).

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Prepping for tomorrow's dinner, there will be 7 of us all vaccinated.

Good morning Maple Spiced Latte and Irish Cream Affogato in the Break Room.

Helping WOM prepping for tomorrow's dinner.

Happy Wednesday!!

My cats have all been talkers, but he quietly chirrs and whirrs all day as he walks around the house. That's perfectly fine, and rather sweet. The howling is another story. He sometimes does it early in the morning, so we have to dissuade him.


Connie, it's been a while since I attempted a holiday dinner for friends and family. I miss it. We always used to have people around for Thanksgiving and Christmas dinner.

We'll be going to a big Thanksgiving dinner tomorrow - like 20 people. Although everyone is vaccinated, we're not very comfortable with it. But our granddaughter will be home on leave from the Army and we are very anxious to see her!

Sounds like fun Draclvr and with everyone vaccinated you're better off, but understand your concern ... stay safe and stay smart.

Yeah Hagatha, holiday times have certainly changed for me too over the years ... oh the memories

Uh oh ... guess what day it is!

Guess what day it is!

Yeppers ... It's Mike's Day today!

Happier than a Camel on Wednesday - Hump Daaaay!

So hagatha, if you say something to him he still won't stop or are you only ignoring him? If you haven't tried saying "whaatt" or something then try it. It can't hurt. My girl will go in the basement (where my brother lives and is sleeping) in the wee hours of the night/morning and start howling. Sometimes I am still up and if she just hears my voice, she'll stop. She usually drags his wand toy upstairs while howling out the side of her mouth.

I hope you all enjoy your Thanksgiving. It's just another day around here. Drac, maybe you should wear your masks to feel a little safer?

My refrigerator seems to be on it's last leg. Lots and lots of food in the freezer probably going to be wasted.

Oldbroad, he will stop if we interact with him. It's just that I don't want to encourage him in any way. Sometimes he's calling Willow, though, when he wants a chase. We frequently hear the sound of pounding little feet racing around the house.

Draclvr, I get the concern. We're still limiting our gatherings to four or five people, mostly because John is so at risk right now.

cooking class was late, try stuffing/dressing tomorrow, it was the only thing i miss, love and enjoy everything else.

Well, good luck hagatha. Not sure you can stop him doing that. When I talk to my cats when they get in that mode, I'm not really interacting with them, just yelling out one word to let them know they're not alone or whatever. I don't go to them and talk to them or play with them at that time. That one word seems to satisfy them and quiet them down.

I make my dressing in the crock pot now, family. I think it's better that way!

use the teacher recipe, she was in a hurry, had to cook thanksgiving dinner, and same thing, going to hubby's folk for thanksgiving.

You may be right. I just established that the howling is an invitation to play "chase me" -- with anyone, human or feline.

Laughing here - my Bloodhound just now start howling outside the window where I'm sitting. If you've never heard the mournful sound of a Bloodhound howling, it's really something. However, she is singing the song of her people along with the coyotes across the road down in the woods!

So I guess Dude is singing the song of his people - meaning the human people who came before us, the ones that spoiled him rotten. But you have to laugh. The SPCA told us he was this timid little scaredy-cat who was getting old and lazy, and in reality the little beast is as lively and personable a cat as I've ever seen.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Happy Thanksgiving, time to start to cook the dinner.

Good morning everyone and Happy Thanksgiving 🦃

Pumpkin Spice Latte in the Break Room.

Stay safe everyone

We're in the midst of another very bad storm. We lot our power for a few minutes -- thankfully that's back on. But apparently there's going to be another 10 days of rain here in BC and it's going to make things much worse for those communities that are already devastated by flooding.

Hagatha ... hoping you keep power for the next 10 days and beyond! Recovering from a flood cannot be easy and so much destroyed in the water damage...

Stay safe!

Stay safe, hagatha !!

And anyone in imminent danger

We're safe here, thankfully. And our power is pretty reliable now -- all of the big trees along the road have either been removed or topped.

same thing.

I spent most of my evening moving as much food out of my freezer, downstairs to my brothers freezer. There is a lot that didn't fit and that was already thawed anyway, so I documented that and will try to figure out how and when and whether or not I'll be able to eat it all. Most, but not all, of the meat product was still frozen. I do have a few meats I'll have to eat. I also keep a lot of convenience items such as breaded chicken strips or shrimp that I can just pop in the oven. Most of all that thawed though.

Oldbroad, I'm really glad you didn't lose everything. That's always nasty, losing a stuffed freezer full of food, especially meat.

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Karaoke with friends tonight.

Good morning to you all.

It is raining here today and possibly some snow.

A good day to install some Christmas decorations in the house.

Take care everybody.

Good morning one and all

Sumatra coffee, Scottish Breakfast Tea and bottled Fiji water for the Break Room.

R&R on the docket for the day sprinkled liberally with Thanksgiving leftovers

Have a great day everyone

college football and chores.

Well, we just had the Day from Heck.

Spent six hours in the Emergency Department, and a darned good thing we did, too. The Spousal Unit finally got around to telling me this morning about the swollen ankle and calf he's been suffering from for the last week. He's also been suffering intense leg pain for the last ten days but had assumed it was a neuropathy from chemo. Turns out it was a large blood clot. The doctor put him on thinners so hopefully it'll resolve itself .

I have to say, we saw some pretty bad behaviour in Emergency, and the staff -- every single one of them -- handled it all with humour and grace and kindness.

Wow hagatha. It never ends does it?. I hope the thinners work and your husband gets back to more normal.

Yeah, it does never end -- which so far is a good thing. The alternative is much worse. This one has a solution, at least, and it will result in some pain reduction.

The Dudelebug has become obsessed with our balcony that looks out over the water. I guess the scents are absolutely intoxicating for the little guy, the ocean and the mink and racoons and our local resident bear, plus all the birds. Even if it's pouring and the wind is howling he goes out, comes in to get warm for five minutes, then goes out again. It's pretty funny. The running commentary is hilarious. He talks all the time, to us, to Willow, to the universe at large, little quiet hoots and chirrs and the odd little meow. I've noticed Willow doing it more, too. They talk to each other -- again, hilarious. They play together all the time now, racing around the house. Little joy-bringers in difficult times.

I hope your Husband benefits from the blood thinners, hagatha, and really pleased to hear the cats are doing well and being a happy distraction again 👍

Good morning, Danish, Donuts, and Bagels in the Break Room. Shopping this morning. Going to the Eagles at noon to watch the FSU/Gator game on the projection TV. Lots of friendly banter, prizes, and finger food. Robert and I are FSU fans. Hagatha prayers the blood thinners work well.

Good morning Connie, Mad, Hagatha, OldBroad, Family and everyone else that pops in today ... Breakfast Blend coffee, Scottish Breakfast Tea and Fiji water for the Break Room.

Hagatha, keeping 'spousal unit' in my prayers for a speedy recovery ... Dude is bringing a whole new level of family life to you

Connie, enjoy and have fun - Go FSU!

Enjoy the games Family

Have a wonderful day everyone

I've had blood clots in my legs a couple of times and twice they traveled to my lungs. For some reason I'm still alive. Trust me that I recognize that particular pain in my legs now! I am on blood thinners permanently. Hopefully his will resolve quickly. Mine did within a month or so.

I am laughing trying to imagine those two cats chirruping to each other! They probably have their own little language! So much fun...

It's good to be back........

I live in Hope BC and our internet and cable tv have been off since the evening of the 14th when we got cut off by all the landslides and floods Hagatha has written about, our power was off for over 24 hours and to start with we had no idea of what was going on, we had to go out and listen to the car radio to get any news, as we drove around Hope it was scary to see all the trapped people who could not find shelter living and sleeping in their cars.

It will be many months before some of the roads out of Hope can be fixed, (some are opened for a short time then closed again) the Coquihalla Highway, the main route to all places east, (that would be the rest of Canada) is a high mountain pass and it will be almost impossible to repair it in the snow of winter, I think it normally gets 8 to 10 feet of snow.

We are both safe and well, but the lose for many poeple is very sad to see.

Wow, copper. We are so relieved to hear you are OK. You were in the middle of it for sure. Been watching it unfold on the news and it's just devastating. And winter is upon you.

Good to know you are safe copper and hope you stay that way!

Copper, Hope is such a small town with so few services. I hope things will be okay for you. I saw all the flooding in Abbotsford and places south, but I wasn't aware that the main highway mountain passes were damaged, too. What an awful mess.

We know the highway well. Just south of Hope it can be a bit hairy anyway in the winter.

Draclvr, the conversation goes something like this:

Brrrr!

Brrrr!

Meowp?

Brrrrrrrrr.