how about drinking?

I'm sorry for your losses, M0mmy. I hope you and your family find peace and ease. 😔

Mommy, sorry to hear of your losses. Grief is a powerful emotion, and not always welcome. You are fortunate to be surrounded by family. I am still sobbing my heart out, daily, missing my 33+ year marriage…painful.

Raising a glass to those grieving. Its so very hard. I've also been lazy as our heat has also been relentless. The ocean breeze helps. The drink above was actually purple - very unique and a first for me.

Mommy keep holding your boundaries against those who try to involve you in unnecessary drama. Also im sorry for your multiple losses. And Wally...cyber hugs continue.

Good morning friends!

Sorry I have been off the radar. I have been working through a gnarly late summer virus that started at the end of July and has had me going through all the phases of it. I am pretty much through it now in all it's glory but it came with some complications like asthma that now goes with any respiratory issue plus I got a weird viral rash this time too (that was a first). Not a normal time of the year for me to get something like this, but I have been spending some time in our clinics the past month with my project so I am blaming it on that. There are SICK people in those clinics! There is always a wave of crud when schools start (which they did the week before last) and then lots that goes around end of August into Sept. It has been a slow crawl out from this but find there is no such thing as a simple cold anymore…

Its been a miserably hot summer here but starting to get the mid- August slight cool down which has us around 90 degrees for hight instead of 100 plus. As much as I love all the things that summer offers here including the festivals and markets, outdoor summer markets, gardening, and outdoor music, it is harder to look forward to things with the increasingly hotter summers. I know I am not alone with this and know it's been really hot everywhere this summer. Plus, some areas are getting TOO MUCH RAIN and having terrible flooding. We have a bad fire to the north of Santa Fe that has been growing but they brought in a hot shot crew from CA and now have almost 500 wildfire fires working on the fire. There are hundreds of fires in the west this year.

Things are rolling along at work and still working to get some things taken care of financially as well as to be ready to go. I am going to have my new(er) car paid off in the next couple months (turned a 6-year car loan into less than 2) and have an HVAC system to update here at the house, plus some work to do with my financial advisors and to prepare for Medicare. I am starting my yoga teacher training next month to get ready for this next chapter and see a timeline between end of the year to March of next year when I reach full SS age. It's funny, I remember in my last year of grad school in the mid 80s being so focused to get my education and get into the workforce, now it's a whole process to be ready to get out of it too! I see my timeline anywhere between end of the year to March 2027 to be ready to go….

Mommy- I am sorry for the additional losses in the family and the family acting out. I have learned that family seems to be at its worst during times when things are not good, especially with sick family, eldercare, losses in the family, etc. I think you have some good boundaries with the problem children and keep those up while you take care of yourself. Sending hugs.

MinusTwo- thank you for thinking of me. I am rising like a phoenix from the ashes once again…

Wallycat- thinking of you too sister and know you are in deep grief with the passing of your DH. I have only way through big losses (or maybe any) is to feel what you need to feel. Do you have the support of a grief counselor or support group? Sometimes can be helpful, it was for me with the loss of a sibling many years ago when I was in my 30s. Please continue to take good care of yourself and sending love across the miles…

NM- hope you and mom are doing okay. Have you been out kayaking this summer? I have such fond memories of Maine in the summer from my youth and into my 20s when I lived there for one summer during college.

Teka- hope all is well in North Country!

Got some things to do to be ready for the work week and hope everyone else here is doing okay, is safe from natural disasters in all their shapes and sizes. Back again soon!

Wally- wow, I am sorry to hear that 😥

Oh man Wally. That stinks!

Locally grown corn is available in multiple locations here. DH has learned to cook a couple of ears with husks on in the microwave. We had corn three nights in a row last week. A bit much for me. LOL.

Good Afternoon, Loungettes! Happy Sunday Fun Day! I'm not having much fun today. I got a call Friday from Birch Bay, Mom is now wandering the halls and not able to find her apartment, among other declines. She going to be moving to BB's Memory Care Unit, they call it Safe Harbor. So Mom's going back to a 1 room place, no ocean view. And I've got to coordinate move #4 in less than a year. Mom has first refusal of the next ocean view room that opens up, so this won't necessarily be the last move I'll have to coordinate. I'm beginning to wonder how much more of this kind of thing I'm going to be able to manage without going totally crazy. And I just found out that Kid Brother is having cervical spinal fusion surgery next month, and knee surgery after that.

mOmmy--I'm so sorry to hear that your Mom has been rocking the boat since your cousin's death. Good for you for staying out of the middle of it all.

Reader--very pretty drink! Do you remember what it's called or what's in it?

mOmmy--Wow, now your niece is trying to get you mired in the family conflict mud puddle!

Jazzy--that summer virus sounds like it's made life pretty miserable for you and a lot of people. The timing holds, though, with you being in clinics and school starting. There really isn't anything like a simple cold anymore, is there? Glad to hear the summer heat is starting to ease off. Mom's doing ok considering the decline that comes with vascular dementia moving right along. I have not had the kayak out yet this summer, was going to try today but thunderstorms coming through. Was going to try for tomorrow but need to go see Mom and get details on the upcoming move. What part of Maine were you in that summer?

Wally--why does it seem like the one service needed is the one not available so often? I wonder if the hospice is Medicare certified? If so, I think having a key service "on hiatus" is violating CMS rules.

Hi, Minus!

Teka--sweet corn is just hitting the farmer's markets here, too! Gotta get me some this week.

Carole--I never realized that some people cook corn on the cob with the husk off until I was a teenager! I've heard of cooking it in coolers filled with hot water, have often cooked it as the top layer of clams, lobster and corn at clambakes, have not heard of cooking it in the microwave, although nowadays I suppose anything can be cooked in the microwave! Does it come out good?

Corn-on-the-Cob

Ingredients
1 1/2 ozMexican corn whiskey
1 ozAmericano bianco
3/4 ozCorn/maize liqueur
6 dashCoriander bitters
3 dropSaline solution 4:1

Instructions

1. Chill an old-fashioned glass.
2. Add all ingredients to a mixing glass.
3. Add ice and stir until well chilled (15–30 seconds).
4. Strain over fresh ice into the chilled glass.
5. Garnish with a grilled baby corn.

Garnish
• Grilled baby corn

From https://www.barkeeper-app.com/cocktails/corn-on-the-cob/

Corn on the cob. Yum but in limited quantities. NM I cannot remember either the name of the drink nor what was in it. It was tasty though!

So sorry your mom is starting to wander. You could start a moving company with all your recent experiences doing just that.

NM, cooking corn in the microwave is quite common, and it comes out just as good as other cooking methods. You rinse the cob with water to remove dirt. In our combo convection/microwave in the 5th wheel, two ears take 6 minutes. You can let it sit a minute or two or not. Using a sharp knife, cut off the end that attaches to the stalk. Grasp the end with the silk, using a kitchen towel or heat pad to protect your hand, squeeze. The ear comes out cooked and silk free. Eat with butter and maybe a sprinkle of salt. Ta Da! You can modify the cooking time if you like your corn "more done."

I'm sad to learn that your mom is declining.

Nail trimming day here in my house. My cats Princess and Grace let me use the nail grinder on them. Their trimming took no more than five minutes each. Nugget was totally not in favor of the grinder, so I used the nail clippers I kept in case he would resist the grinder. Little squirming but with some belly rubs and kisses, he let me trim his his nails. He got a treat and is snuggled on my lap snoozing.

No Lowes near me. Only Home Depot which is 15 minutes away and a Menards here in town. I prefer Menards over Home Depot though.

I love decorating for Halloween and Christmas, its easy to put it all up, but a pain to take it down. I have this one half skeleton aka 'Skelly' that is dressed like a punk rocker that I hang in front on a shepard hook. Its eyes light up! Brought it all the way from Connecticut, my neighbors get such a kick from seeing it! I have to go out to the shed this weekend and start seeing what I want to add to my display this year. One year I bought a bag of plastic skeleton parts and poked holes for the string to hang them from a tree! Thinking of adding them this year and accenting them with lights!