Can we have a forum for "older" people with bc?

@Canarycat - will be thinking of you as radiation starts. Wishing you smooth and hopefully pain free treatments.

@Betrayal - good news on the stress test results.

@Illinoislady - fingers crossed for good results on the upcoming CT

@Cindy - good to hear from you. I’m sorry to hear about your gf’s DH. I do not think you can ever be prepared for losing a life partner.

Good morning. The sun it out bright which I'm loving. Sounds like it will stay cool though. If the wind does not come up too strong the 60 's won't feel that bad with sun. Still, I was truly enjoying the freedom of going out with just a long sleeve shirt.

Cindy, good to hear from you and know you are fine. How wonderful of your neighbors and you to help out with your neighbor during the loss and finality of losing her husband. It sounds like a situation where he Dh just kept slipping further downhill till the fall. When we get older usually a lot of our ills are spaced so that we fully recover and move on. Sometimes though w/o warning much — we don't get through with one till the next one arrives. May she and any other family find the road to acceptance and peace.

I'm going in Tues. for a haircut. Then, a couple months later another perm. We will see — maybe I'll like it enough not to other with the perm, but I sort of doubt it. Thin, fine hair doesn't magically straighten up with time on this earth. Lots of chemo and radiation didn't help, but sure glad they were available to me.

Going to be a quiet day here. Had some issue falling asleep real well last night and likely a small branch or something fell on the roof sometime during the night. Woke up to Lil' Red barking away. I will say Schnauzers are great watchdogs. Uh, I can't say that is the thought I'm having at 2 a.m. in the morning, but at least someone is on the 'job' at that time.

Hope all is well with Harley, Taco, Chris, Sandy and all you wonderful ladies. Hope your pollen is not too great Carol. We will be seeing the green haze really soon here and I can't say I'm looking forward. I may have to go get more allergy pills. I've been able to skip them for a while lately and feel fine. Fingers crossed.

Have a wonderful day.

Have a "to-do" list of things I wanted to accomplish before surgery and one was to take some jewelry pieces for appraisal. He has limited hours only from Wednesdays to Saturday, so I gathered up some pieces I wanted him to look at. Three were Vietnam era rings my DB got for me from Thailand. They were not too expensive then and 2 of the 3 are rather large pieces with multi-stones including opals and blue sapphires, and one is a dome of individual rubies. I was considering having them refashioned into pendants but he said they are top heavy and it most likely would not be possible. The third is a Thai temple ring of black sapphires and rubies. It is beautiful. So I will have them appraised and resized when he reopens for business. Given their age and not current style they are worth far more than I imagined. Question is could I replace them today for what he guesstimates they are worth and the answer is "no". So I most likely will insure them.

His wife is having major surgery so he will close for several weeks but didn't want to hang on to them. He will resize and appraise a diamond ring I had bought from Bailey, Banks and Biddle (when they were closing initially in 2007) and that will be available soon.

Will take a few pieces at a time to him for appraisal and resizing as necessary. They will be left to my DD and entrusted to her to leave to DGD eventually. It's a shame arthritis has made my fingers and hands so ugly when these are such pretty pieces to wear. I want to enjoy them again though.

Sunny now but rain predicted to march in this afternoon. Light breeze compared to yesterday's gusts. It's now in the mid-50's so pleasant to be outside.

Misty pushed a potted plant off the bay window sill yesterday so there was dirt all over the place as well as this succulent. It needed to be repotted but I did not have a wide flat pot to replant all the pieces in. So three pots later and after much sweeping, I got the last of the mess up. She was tracking birds outdoors and decided she didn't have enough room, so she made some. I'll move the orchids to where this large pot used to be. One of them needs to be repotted since it appears it got tipped while we were away and needs more orchid soil.

So now I can get started on housework on first floor. I want to mop the foyer, dust and swiffer the living room and then call it a day for housework.

There is a series I want to watch on Netflix if I can find it. I will treat myself to watching a few episodes and perhaps while I am ironing.

Hope everyone has a great day and waving hello to all who haven't chimed in lately.

Looks good, kitty.

I have a thirty-two band and 36 bust measurement. Remember I am still wearing the surgical bra. What size bra do I need to get? Not going to actually buy until after I get permission to wear on Wednesday.

This is from a goodhousekeeping article:

What's the right bra for my breast shape?

Just because you've found your correct bra size (yay!) doesn't mean your work is done (sorry!). If you're not finding the perfect fit even after measuring yourself, you might be missing an important piece of context: your breast shape. Even if you’re wearing the ‘correct’ size, it might be that you’re wearing the wrong bra for your shape.

Fit is dictated as much by size as it is by breast shape, so you shouldn't be afraid to try additional sizes from various brands to find the bra that looks the most flattering and feels the most comfortable. Here are some tips to ID your breast shape:

• Round breasts carry fullness all over. For full breasts, our experts recommend triangle or plunge bras that hug breasts without digging in.
• Teardrop breasts mostly carry fullness on the bottom. Try sweetheart demi silhouettes or fabric overlays that keep cups laying flat.
• Compact breasts sit high, and you might find that bras sit away from your body or that lace or fabric doesn’t lie flat. Shop for stretch fabrics or bras with contoured padding.
• Wide-set breasts carry fullness on the sides. Look for bras with gently curving underwires and generously spaced gores (the center part of the bra between cups).
• Asymmetric breasts are different sizes. Look for stretchy, shallow cups or contour styles sized to the larger breast. (Hint: Always shop for the larger breast to avoid telltale spillover.) You can also shop for bras with removable padding to compensate for the smaller side.

How do I know know if my bra fits correctly?

• The band sits level all the way around your ribcage without riding up, constricting, or squeezing.
• The center of the bra lays completely flat against the breastbone. That center piece between the cups is called the gore, and it shouldn't hover above the chest.
• The straps fit snugly without digging in. They should be adjusted to fit tightly enough for support, but not so tight that they dig in. Indentations or tired shoulders are a sign they're too tight.
• The cups don't gape or dig into the breasts, even when you move around. Be sure to walk, dance and wiggle around a bit to see how your breasts settle into the cups, and check both the sides and the front for potential spillage.
• Lastly, raise your arms. If the bra stays in place, then you have found a good fit for you.

Who knew your question would raise so many other thoughts. Hope this helps.

a good friend sent me this link. I finally have proper fitting bras!
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8Jk55ep4XUQ

Hope it opens for you. Cheers. Great photo of the ball diamond!

Canary and Betrayal: Avidly read all the info on bras. It has always been something of a mystery to me. My issue now is that I believe lots of muscle disturbance with open heart surgery — but I'm pretty sure I can get on the right track now.

Don't know when the rain started, but woke up to lots of it and it is still on-going. So, it was another night rain. We knew it was going to come — just not for sure exactly when. Hopefully this will just encourage more Spring, although right now it is just encouraging mud. Well, my car might end up a mite cleaner. I was getting the 'dirt spots' from winds blowing in from Texas.

Nothing to do much today except some laundry and assorted (the whatever jumps out at me first) tasks. Some days are like that. I see a list item and go for it. I seem to fall apart when I actually try too hard to make a real plan on things. Not sure when that started but it's been a while now.

Hope you are all going to have a really fine day.

canarycat, thanks for the youtube video but I question if this works with breasts that are other than perky? I really felt the bra she preferred was too small because she had side and back rolls that she did not have with the first bra which was the correct size according to her measurements. Doesn't hurt to try though and unfortunately, surgery and radiation have left me with mismatched breast sizes.

I used to love bras like she bought but can no longer wear them, sigh. I will give it a try because based on what she said I am not wearing the correct size so I do need to correct this because they are not comfortable. The only purpose it serves is to corral the girls.

Today is sunny, temp only in the high 30's and it seems like winter rather than spring. This will make the daffodils, hyacinths and grape hyacinths last longer though. I'll take that.

Back pain which had been silent since knee replacement is back with a vengeance and I attribute its return to lying on CT table (no padding) and having to have right arm above my head for over 30 minutes. It is right sided pain with a trigger point and I took a med to try to ward it off last night. Didn't touch it, so I may have to keep taking the med until I get some relief.

Will dust living room today. I did get to the foyer mopping and dry dusting floor in living room but quit when back started to hurt. So behind but no plans for today beside cleaning bird cages and straightening up which is a daily task. DH leaves a trail of litter (misplaced items) as he moves through the house. I also have a mini-trail due to different projects I have in progress.

Hope everyone has a great day.

Necessity is the mother of invention and it seems your makeshift window perch supports this adage. Ziggy likes it and that's what matters.

I cannot pull a bra over my head and I have yet to find a sports bra that is comfortable or supportive. So like you I need to search because I am currently DD (so need wide straps) but think this is wrong due to incomplete breast coverage on the sides. So as soon as I locate my cloth tape measure I will give it a go. We do have a Nordstrom and a Nordstrom rack in KOP so I can go there to look at what's available. I used to wear Glamorize underwires and loved them, but post- surgery the underwire put pressure on my incision and was uncomfortable. Location of SNB is also a problem because it is right at edge of bra cup and 9 years later is still very painful. I will take a look at the Wings bras, so thanks for sharing that.

Just saw 3 wrens at the suet cake. I know I have one that is a permanent resident on my front porch but know I did have two living there one year. I'll have to see who is using the bird bottles I have available. They won't let DH sit on the porch once they have laid eggs and he does get annoyed but we have a perfectly available patio for him to use instead.

Good morning. Despite starting yesterday with lots and lots of rain, later the sun was out. Still, we had so much rain that the ground out below my window looks very wet and you sure wouldn't want to walk there. We have sun this morning already so good sign. I hope it starts to dry us out and make the mud back into just dirt. Sounds like more could come on Wednesday —- grrrr. I might add — spring usually means plenty of rain.

Nothing on for today. I'm glad it is going to be another — whatever gets in my way will be what is addressed. I made a pan of mush last night to fry for breakfast — will have butter and maple syrup on it. I do that every now and then. Pancakes and waffles are too much salt — but none in mush. That is the same reason we switched from Cream of Wheat to Malt O' Meal. No salt.

My scars (cancer) aren't a real problem for my bras, but my implanted defibrillator is. I've learned to ignore it most of the time, but now and then it creeps up and I'm a little miserable till I can slip the bra off. I've tried a couple of different bras but keep going back to my older ones. The thinner straps can be pushed off the bulging protrusion of the implant and that helps to keep me a bit comfier.

Betrayal. loved the crocs. Good thing I don't have a fence handy. I'd probably do that with my old 'crocs' too.

Hope you all have a good day.

Jackie, take those bras to a seamstress. I am sure she can rig up some kind of adaptation. While roaming around on the bra-fitting YouTubes, I also found one on adaptations.

I went out to WalMart. They don't have anything in the more exotic sizes. Got home and sat down to view Amazon's collection. Vast. Definitely not WalMart. I used the selection function to give me an array of size 32G, full coverage, no underwire. I got one for sport, and one for dress. They won't be here for a while. I will have the thing in my e-mail, and we can discuss my selection when I see the PA. I have a lot of extra skin that needs to be corralled.

I just made some baingan bharta with roasted pureed eggplant. Onion, garlic, tomato jalapeno, turmeric, and garam masala. Indian dish, I am snacking on it right now, will make some rice later.

My DS and BIL just left after a weekend visit. It was good although we certainly wore Ken out. Meeting with the cardiologist tomorrow about his last echo.

The high today was 96! Not ready.

Sunny today and should get into the 60's. Dry as well. Sun yesterday as well but we still 'look' a mite muddy outside my window. Guess we will dry in time for the rain due on Wednesday.

Going for a haircut today. Hope I have enough body/curl left afterwards. The next cut will likely end up being part of a perm. I like the gal so far who is doing my hair. She is higher than my sweet little Beth who passed likely almost a yr. ago now, but I felt perhaps (I don't think of this as a true criteria) being more expensive, she might be as good as I felt Beth was. Hard to keep your customers if you are not good around here. There are a lot of beauticians since this is a retirement town (not the same job opportunities for that reason) and many are good but to me there is good and then there is excellent. I'm looking for the excellent one that I can afford with my thin, fine hair. I have had my share of 'disasters' on my search for the people who can make me happy with what they do. So far, I've felt Amy has it and I hope it stays that way.

Taco, I hope the news is decent with the Cardiologist meeting tomorrow. Also, that DS and BIL got to see Ken. Likely at this stage any prolonged amt. of time (no matter how carefully arranged) might be wearing. A weekend is a huge amt. of time though. Still, precious for the visitors I would think.

Despite the fact that you shouldn't have to be a part of someone's medical team, I'm glad you were there at the PT room where the lady fell yesterday. It sounds like someone with confidence, able to give highly sufficient directions was needed. Also, that you helped with a cogent plan for times when the staffing is thinner by far than it should be. It's a dangerous situation and I hope the new owners have considered this and will look to get more people hired.

Carole that is really good news on the eyes. That is an important part in aging to keep up with. It reminds me that I need to be seen. I have a lazy eye — but it is healthy save for its limited use. However, they are watching my other eye for a cataract and want to wait as long as possible since if something were to go wrong, I'd really have a struggle if I ever could get the lazy eye to function better. When I was a little kid I was supposed to wear a patch over my 'good' eye for a certain length of time to try and retrain my eye but being young I did not have the patience or understanding about long range viewpoints and so did not accomplish much of anything.

Hope you all have a really nice day.