Books

Brett and I are going to The Eclipse Company Store tonight to play Bingo with Bretta.

I’ve already warned her that I don’t know how much patience I’ll have with it but that I’m going to try.

I used to play WIN with Dan and I really didn’t have the patience for it. I’d get aggravated because it took so long for the numbers to be called.

When Sandy Gyure was the one calling, it was more fun but when it was the man, the game just drag on forever.

We’re going to eat there so I’m saving my calories for the tacos.

Wish me luck . . .

I was thinking about the things in life that give me the most joy and they’re the small things. Time spent with family, babysitting the grandkids, a girls night with the cousins, hanging out with friends, hiking with the husband, taking small trips, the love of our animals. this all bring me joy.

Talking to my son about things, chatting on the phone with my daughter and step-daughter, visiting with my step-son and his girlfriend, chatting with Martha via text, phone, or in person. These things bring me joy.

Hearing a song on the radio that I really like or that brings back memories of long gone family members, watching a video that is made of one of the grandkids when they were small, brings me joy.

A song, a movie, a good book, having a clean house, a clean car . . . Being able to get one of my books in print . . . A text from Alexis just to see how I’m doing, a text from Lauren just to say I love you, watching my youngest cousins school musicals and plays. These all bring me joy.

I guess, it doesn’t really take to much to bring me joy and make me happy.

Who knew that when Goldie went into her coop last night and bedded down that it would be for the last time?

The poor little girl survived a Raccoon attack, in which she lost eight of her sisters, a Red Tail Hawk attack, which took one of her last six sisters, an attack by the neighbors Husky, which took three more of them, and whatever happened to Little Red. (Cherry became egg bound and we lost her, that left just Goldie.)

Goldie was getting up in years, her egg laying days were just about over, we were down to getting an egg a week, maybe, from her.

She was a pet.

The minute I named them they became pets. So losing her hurts.

And to think, I was worried about how she would be with my new chicks, when I got them come Spring. I’ve not got to worry about that now.

Rest in peace, Goldie. You were a good little Hen.

I hate that the Burgess Seed Company uses Fed Ex to deliver their plants and seeds. Last year, because of them, my plants were delivered dead as were my trees and my seeds were cooked.

Fed Ex delivers my stuff as far as three miles from where I live. I’ve called countless times to complain but it’s useless, nothing can be done.

Burgess is great though. They refund my money in store certificates and replace what they can but them using Fed Ex is ridiculous.

I just had my $62 spring seeds delivered to my brothers, up the road. They tossed the box on his deck and left. It was 24 degrees out. No one knew that they were there.

Sometime after I got home from work, at 5:30, my brother got home. He found the box and brought it to me.

I was livid. All day long those seeds sat in that box, on his deck, in freezing temperatures.

I emailed Burgess Seed that night. The next morning, I called Fed Ex. Par for the course, nothing could be done. They told me that I needed to take it up with Burgess Seed and that the company would have to call them. I was so pissed, even though I knew this would happen.

I waited a few days but Burgess didn’t respond to my email, so I called them today. The lady was very nice but I mad. I told her about not getting a reply to my email, told her about Fed Ex, and told her that if the seeds were frozen that I wanted my money back and that it was money that I wanted refunded this time and not store credit.

She wasn’t very helpful but she did tell me that if the seeds didn’t sprout after I’d planted them to give them a call back and that they would make it right with me,

I told her that I wanted that in writing, because I wanted my money and would never buy from them again. I told her that I would buy my seeds, plants, and trees elsewhere.

She was apologetic and sent me an email with a ticket number on it. I suppose that is what I’m to give them if the seeds don’t grow.

Fed Ex in this area is a joke. I have had nothing but trouble with them. No matter how many times I call and complain, they just can’t seem to deliver to my address.

And now I just received notification that Fed Ex is the one delivering my Amazon order, a 4.5 oz bottle of pure Lemon Oil. I guess, I’d better be prepared to contact Amazon because a box that small will never make its way to my house. Grr!!!

I did a two hour Supernatural workout on my Oculus. I burnt 901 calories because I did all high and mediums.

I haven’t worked out to my Leslie Sansone’s Walk at Home DVD’s in a couple of weeks. I guess, I really should try and incorporate them back into my workouts so that I don’t stagnate.

Switching back and forth had ought to keep things broken up enough to keep the weight coming off, slow as that may be, as long as I stick to my 1,600 calorie intake.

One thing is for certain, I sure sleep good after working out for that long . . . And speaking of sleep, I’m about ready to head to bed.

Goodnight, everyone.

My next book signing is in March at the Jackson Library.

I am hoping for a better turn out at this one than I had in my own hometown.

I know what I want to write my next book about but I’ve not gotten started yet. I think, perhaps, I should make notes before I forget.

This time around, getting the weight off is a slow process. I’ve been sticking to my 1,600 calorie a day diet and exercising up to two hours a night, no less than four nights a week, and I’m still only losing a pound a week. Five weeks, five pounds down.

And on top of my struggle with weight, it was called to my attention yesterday that my hair is thinning. I’ve always had thick hair but my step-son is right, it is considerably thinner than it used to be. How is it that I have never noticed? Now I’m going to be worrying about it.

I read on the internet that lemon oil is good for hair regrowth, so I ordered a bottle. I also read that using pure lemon juice ten minutes before washing your hair helps to stimulate the hair follicles. So I am going to buy some lemons as well.

I read that some women’s hair thins with age, I’ve read where prolonged use of chemicals will cause it to thin and I’ve dyed my hair many, many times over the years; in a multitude of colors. And I’ve read where it could be hereditary. My Grandma’s hair did get thin but it wasn’t until she got sick. Whatever the reason, I am now a little self conscious about it.

It doesn’t look thin, but where I could once barely get an elastic band twice, when I was putting it in a ponytail, it will now go around it three times easily. When did this happen? How could I not have noticed?

So here I am, overweight with thin hair . . . Hopefully, I can get the weight off and correct the hair issue. I’ll buy men’s Rogaine if the lemon juice and oil doesn’t work.

Why is it that everything has to be a struggle anymore?

After nearly a month of dieting and exercising, I am down only 4.3 pounds. I had been hoping for a bigger loss but I’ll take what I can get. A loss is a loss, right?

Still, at the same time, it is frustrating to have worked so hard and not taken off any more than that. 😔

I know that age has a lot to do with it. I know that the older you get the more your metabolism slows down. Seems to me that mine may have crawled off somewhere and died. 😂

My goal remains the same though. I want to have lost, HOPE to lose, at least 40 pounds by September.

Carrie gave me a copy of her diet. I think, I may print it out. All it is are sheets that tell you what you can eat on certain days. She said that, along with an hour of daily exercise, helped her to lose weight. It’s worth a shot, right?

Weight loss is such a struggle for me anymore. It is also something that I NEVER dreamed that I’d have a problem with. I was also thin. It just seems like once I started putting it on, I couldn’t stop.

I’m even losing weight slower, this time, than I did the last. Last time, in three months, I’d lost 23.8 pounds. It doesn’t look like I’m going to lose that much that fast this go round.

No matter how frustrating this gets, I am going to have to make myself stick to it, if I ever hope to drop any kind of significant amount.

For now, my will power is strong. Wish me luck.

First we learned that Molly had cancer; which thankfully they got all of, then Falina is diagnosed with thyroid issues and is put on pills, which she will be on, twice a day for the rest of her life, and now Fancy has been put on arthritis pills.

As with us, our girls are starting to show their age. Fancy will be ten in April.

Falina and Molly are both, now, nine.

Our youngest girl is Fiona and she will be five in July.

We also have Dobby, the Newfoundland that we inherited. He just turned four. The girls don’t care a whole lot for him, unfortunately. I wish they did. He is such a lovable big fella.

Darned if I haven’t turned into one. Heck, when I started this blog I thought that I’d be oh so productive with it and just look at me, barely posting at all.

Let’s see . . . My diet and exercise are going well; although I am fairly disappointed with my weight loss. I have only lost 3.2 pounds in three weeks. I was hoping for, scratch that, I had my heart set on losing more. I’m not giving up though. I’d wanted to lose 40 pounds by September, so I’m down to 36.8, or something like that.

I also plan to start a new book just as soon as I finish reading this Suzanne Young series. It’s really good, you need to look her up,

I need to finish getting ready for work, now.

I guess, this tiny blog post is better than not blogging at all.