Tag Archives: rain

October 27, 2025 · 2:07 am

Monday 10-27-2025

This is one of the 3-D metal pieces my husband and I made and hung in our shared office in Arkansas. The half moon was raised from the rest of the piece.

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http://www.trainingogy.uk

Yesterday I did my afternoon exercise of dancing to fun music while holding water bottles as weights and doing arm exercises. I think I got a little bit too enthusiastic because I was sore when I woke this morning. The walk on the treadmill at the gym helped a bit, but I’ll do an extra long, slow session of my yoga stretching this afternoon to see if I can get completely stretched out.

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Today was delightful for letting my laundry dry out on the balcony. It’s been nice and sunny all day, so I could be almost lackadaisical about checking the dryness before bringing it in.

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Speaking of that, now that the “Rainy Season” is coming to an end here, I may be getting the leaks in my windows fixed next month! It will be super nice not to have to worry every time it rains hard, running around with bucket and towels. Next rainy season, I may just be able to look out and say, “Wow, it’s raining hard!” rather than getting so personally involved in the wet. 🙏🏻😃

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My puzzle is coming together more quickly now. It’s fun to work on it, seeing the gorgeous image emerge from the pieces.

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I’m trying to divide my time between working on the puzzle, doing a bit of art work, and reading my book. Such a difficult choice for such a spoiled and pampered retired lady such as I!

I hope you’re consciously arranging to put some fun in your life. Having almost died in February, I realize that if I hadn’t gotten a second chance, I never would have experienced the joy of doing something I truly love each day. We’re not in control of how long we have, but we ARE in charge of carving out little spaces of time to do something that makes our lives richer.

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October 26, 2025 · 3:15 am

End of the Rainy Season?

http://www.chiangmailtraveller.com


THE RAINY SEASON – (June – October) – especially heavy June through August – heaviest in July.

We are finally getting to the end of “The Rainy Season” here in Chiang Mai. This has been a real adjustment for me.

I have a condo I love with large picture windows letting lots of light in and providing a spectacular view. Unfortunately, they also leak. The hard rains have moved me to form my ‘bucket and towel brigade’ with a membership of one, to be ready at a moment’s notice, day or night, to put rolled up towels on all the window sills, watching them carefully and wringing them out into a bucket at intervals until the rain has passed, and then trying to get the towels dry to be armed for the next rain..

I have also learned to always carry an umbrella and a “rain suit” that is an ingenious invention made from a plastic bag, with sleeves and a hood with a drawstring. Just the thing when it’s really blowing and pouring.

Happily, our condo building will be doing exterior repairs and repainting once the rainy season is completely over. One of the things on the list is doing outside resealing of windows – hopefully making it so the bucket brigade won’t be necessary next time.

The rain here is very different from what I was used to in the States. In Arkansas, if it rained, it rained most of the day. We postponed activities until it dried out. Here, it can absolutely POUR for several minutes and then stop, as if a faucet was turned off, the sun coming out and the rest of the day beautiful – or pour again, just as soon as you get your rain suit or umbrella put away. As long as you learn to be prepared to pull out your umbrella or don your rain suit, you get used to dealing with it, not postponing any activities. (I also carry a trash bag to put my wet umbrella in until I can open it up and dry it at home.)

My rain suit is actually purple, though it shows pink here.

Trying to get laundry done during the rainy season is quite laborious. I try to get my laundry out on my little balcony early in the morning to catch the good sun. Many times a sudden rain storm will drench your clothes, so you have to keep an alert eye on the skies, rather than depending on the weather app, ready to drag your drying rack inside very quickly to rescue your clothes. Then the sun will come out, and you reverse the process – sometimes several times – until the task is done.

Typhoons come from the direction of Vietnam. It’s a bit scary with weather alerts on your phone. (The alerts are in Thai – pretty useless to a non-Thai speaker like me)- but I’ve learned what it is and look for the dates that it will hit Chiang Mai. We’re up high, so we don’t have to worry about flooding, but we DO have to get serious about the bucket brigade at times like this…

The Rainy Season is coming to an end here. My son Brian says Thai ‘winter’ is next with a bit cooler temperatures (only 85 or so in the afternoons) and a LOT less rain! I’m ready!!!!!

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October 6, 2025 · 1:47 am

Happy Monday 10-6-2025

Tina Ann

This is our reminder to make time for fun every day, making ourselves part of our priority list.

I’ve had a good day. I had my workout at the gym. Brian complimented me, saying I’m steadier on my feet, more agile, and he worries about me less. A SHOWER of compliments from my son!

I just got back from getting a mani/pedi. I’m having this done every two months. It gives me something to look forward to, and having professionals take care of my hands and feet is a healthy addition to my taking care of myself. The ‘polish’ is my FUN part. Brian has been goading me to paint my toenails and fingernails ‘cyan.’ I actually had to look it up, but it’s a range of shades of aqua.

Scheme Color

I’ve ignored his request up until today. Since he has introduced me to the whole idea of mani/pedis, found a place to get the service, and actually sits there and waits while I get it done, I figured today was the day.

When he saw my fingernails, his grin filled his whole face. He said, “All RIGHT!!! I’m not sure I actually LIKE this color, but his reaction is certainly worth spending two months with it. 😄. We followed this with a stop for chocolate – icing on the cake of the nice morning.

When I was coming back from breakfast with Brian, I met the cleaning lady who has been so, so nice to me. She was by herself, so I motioned for her to follow me out to sit on the bench in the foyer type area that is on each floor. (Happily, I remembered to turn my hand down and make a clawing motion, rather than the normal, “Come here” gesture, so I didn’t insult her suggesting she was an animal.)

She put down all her stuff and I got out the earrings I’ve been carrying around. I showed her, pointed to her ears. She looked really surprised, but I made as sure as I could that the earrings were for her. Her face split with a grin and she put them in her ears as we sat there. She stood up, did a little dance, and I helped her put her mask on again. I don’t think she got the idea that I painted the earrings, but the delight in her eyes showed she liked them.

I got home from our morning and quickly moved to the balcony to get my laundry in. Everything was completely dry with the exception of my socks, which were ALMOST dry. I brought everything in and was closing the balcony door when the rain started. WHEW!

It was a hard rain, so it wasn’t long before I needed to roll up towels to put on the window sills to contain the leakage. I have my bucket there to wring out the towels when needed.

Here’s my latest painted sketch. I love Halloween, and will see what I can find regarding creative costumes for kids plus wonderful jack-o-lanterns to share with you.

Have a fun day!

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September 23, 2025 · 9:37 pm

Sleepy Day

Tina Ann

I stayed up especially late last night listening to YouTube singing contest videos. I’m a sucker for someone gathering their courage and trying to sing in front of a huge audience and critical judges. I tear up when they’re successful, cry if they actually win. (I know, I’m hopeless ) 😋

When my photo alarm went off at 5 a.m. this morning, I checked to see if there had been a mistake. I must have set the alarm incorrectly – but, NOOOOO! It was time to get up and get dressed to go to the gym.

I was sitting on the couch, still trying to wake up when Brian texted me that he wasn’t feeling well and wanted to skip the gym today. I decided to go ahead and shower and dress for breakfast and going to visit Harvey at the nursing home.

It’s quite cloudy and my phone app says it will be cloudy and rainy all day. It lies, though, so I decided to go ahead and put the laundry I had washed out on the balcony on the drying rack. I may regret that later – if we’re out and the rain starts – but it won’t be the end of the world.

It’s a perfect day to take a nice nap. I’m fighting that, but I’m not sure for how long. I don’t know what it is about a cloudy day that makes me sleepy, but it works every time. Then if I can hear the rain (and it’s NOT leaking around my windows), I can really rest well.

Brian tells me that once the rainy season is over around the first of November, then it will get HOT and the sun will be super strong, and no rain will fall for weeks at a time. All this is completely new to me. It’s like I have been dropped onto a different planet at times. By the NEXT rainy season, I’ll feel like a veteran. Hopefully, my window leaks will have been fixed and the bucket and towel brigade can be retired.

For now, I’m getting up from the computer every few minutes to keep alert…

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August 25, 2025 · 8:54 pm

Tuesday, August 26, 8:38 A.M.

Pinterest – Treadmill – Lazy Dog gif

This morning I changed things up and took our son’s suggestion that I just walk using no incline and NOT gripping the handle bars as I have been doing to make sure I don’t fall.

I used a speed of 3.5 ( my normal walking speed) and just touched the handle bars with my fingertips. They were there if I needed them, but I didn’t have to grab them today. I DID notice that I held myself differently when NOT gripping the handlebars. I had to concentrate a LOT more, and I FELT muscles working in my back, my butt, and the backs of my legs. I may be sore in the morning, and that will show I’m waking up this old body and building new strength. I also am retraining my brain at the same time, so this is a really good change.

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The nursing home texted Brian with a video and some pics of Harvey in the wheelchair outside, getting fresh air and a bit of sunshine yesterday. He also was petting a couple of dogs we hadn’t seen before. The nurse said he didn’t want to give up the squeeze ball we brought him, so she just let me hold it as long as he wanted to. She said she thought it was a great toy for him. 😁

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Today we’re going to run a couple of errands. I’m hoping we don’t drown in the rain and I’m watching the skies to rush to get my laundry in before we go if the rain starts up again. So far, so good.

I hope that you’re finding something today that makes your face crack you’re grinning so hard!

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July 22, 2025 · 10:26 pm

Wednesday, July 23, 9:41 a.m

My wonderful friend – and new mom of my cat, Jet – Carla, sent me this photo today showing Jet hogging the dog bed with doggies all around, trying not to bother her while they get some rest, too. Hahahahahahaahahahah! 🤣

Brian and I had to don our trashbag rain suits to get to and from the gym this morning due to the heavy rain. The rain is supposed to continue all day. We are under a flood warning, as well as the heavy rain happening right now, due to a front coming in from Vietnam.

Brian said there was bad flooding a few years ago. There was no damage to our building, but the housing of several of the people who work here had damage. He was in a position to be able to help many of them through this – not completely, but enough to show them he cared that they had problems. Hopefully the flooding coming our way will just be an annoyance, rather than a bad situation.

This is a nice gym.

The lights are automatically turned on each morning at 6am. There are no people in attendance at that hour, and we love being able to do our exercising with no crowds. A few others come while we are there, but not many.

Brian and I use the treadmills, but there is a LOT of other equipment. The gym is spotlessly cleaned. The machines are well maintained and clean. The bathroom is the cleanest I have EVER seen in a public place, with supplies always available.

I feel privileged to be able to use this fine place in my effort to get stronger and more fit.

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We were planning on opening a bank account for me this morning, but the rain is relentless. We will reschedule this for a better day.

My laundry is drying on my drying rack – inside today. My big window in particular is leaking, so every once in a while, I’m taking a towel over and sopping up the water sitting on the window ledge. This is on our list to find someone expert in fixing leaks.

Brian is doing whatever he wants today, including meditating, reading, relaxing, and sleeping. I will see him again at dinner.

I’m enjoying time at my computer, working on my owls puzzle, working on a drawing in my art alcove, reading, and maybe taking a nap. The weather seems to be encouraging a bit of a snooze…

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July 12, 2025 · 9:32 pm

The Rainy Season

The rainy season in Chiang Mai typically spans from May to October, with the heaviest rainfall concentrated in August and September. While it’s often referred to as the “low season” due to increased rainfall, it also brings lush greenery, fewer crowds, and lower prices. 

Key aspects of the rainy season in Chiang Mai:

  • Timing:The rainy season starts around the second week of May, but the rain can sometimes arrive up to two weeks earlier. 
  • Rainfall:About 85% of Chiang Mai’s annual rainfall occurs during this period. 
  • Intensity:Rain tends to fall in the afternoon or evening, often in short, heavy bursts, rather than all-day downpours. 
  • Temperature:The temperature hovers around 30-33 degrees Celsius (90 degrees Fahrenheit) and can cool down significantly after a downpour, providing some relief from the heat. 
  • Considerations:While the rainy season can offer a unique and beautiful experience, it’s important to be prepared for potential disruptions to outdoor activities and travel plans due to heavy rain and high humidity. 
  • Activities:Despite the rain, many activities can still be enjoyed, including exploring waterfalls, experiencing cultural festivals, and taking advantage of lower prices and fewer crowds. 
  • Preparation:Pack essentials like an umbrella, raincoat, waterproof shoes, and insect repellent, especially if you plan on spending time outdoors. 

It was absolutely POURING when I got up at 5 this morning. My inclination, after living in the states all my life, was to think the maybe Brian would call off going to the gym because of the rain. Then, when I was awake, I realized I was still thinking like a foreigner. Thai people take the rainy season in stride. Most things go on as usual. They might be delayed a bit, but no major changes. They are very prepared, with umbrellas, hats, rain suits, etc. and just go on with their day as usual.

Since we were going to the gym, my main concern was my carrier and everything in it getting soaked on our walk to and from the gym. I stuffed my key and sweat rag in one pocket and my phone in the other, carrying my rain suit.

Now the sun is shining, but the weather app is calling for heavy rains. I did my wash this morning and brought my drying rack inside, putting a sheet under it to catch any drips.

We don’t have anything on the schedule today. We shared a really nice breakfast (2 fried eggs, sliced sausage and sliced chicken with a dark juice) and will see each other for dinner.

I’m wearing a pair of my new silky shorts, looking forward to working on my owl puzzle, starting another drawing in my sketchbook, starting a new Lee Child book, playing on my computer a bit, and maybe taking a nap. I love it!

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June 28, 2025 · 4:35 am

Really Nice Saturday

Credit: Warren Goldswain – 123RF

I walked my mile on the treadmill at the gym this morning, increasing my speed a bit, so that feels good. I also decided to switch my yoga stretching and back exercises to this morning, instead of waiting until the evening, because too often I find ‘other things to do’ (translation: laziness) and then it’s time to go to bed.

I washed out my exercise clothes and some other stuff and put everything on the drying rack out on my balcony. The weather app said thunderstorms would come around 3pm, so I figured I would have time to get things dry and inside before then.

Well the clouds and the weather app weren’t in perfect harmony because the rains came early. I was playing in my art alcove and leaped up when I heard the rain starting. I brought everything inside. Part of the things were dry, but my jeans shorts still need some time. I have them hanging at half mast from a hanger balanced on a shelf right now. The rain seems to be stopping. I may put them back out, or just wait and see if they need more tomorrow.

I’ve been having fun in my art alcove, choosing drawings from YouTube and Pinterest, Etsy, and things I find other places. I’m trying to improve my sad ability to reproduce what I see. I have a big fat sketchbook with lots and lots of pages. I can fill it up, throw it out and start another one, or whatever. I’m not going to ‘do’ anything with these, because the ideas are not mine. I’m not under any pressure doing this, so it has become just a fun activity that might result in improvement.

I started these at the cafe yesterday when we were being scarce so my wonderful housekeeper could work in peace. (I asked Brian to write Khun Nong to tell her how pleased I am with the work she is doing for me, and, of course, the flowers! )

I finished the sketches today. They are good therapy in that trying to reproduce the work of others drives other concerns from my mind for a time, bringing calmness.

I’ve actually made a bit of progress with my owls picture jigsaw puzzle. Nothing to write home about, but I’m not completely at a standstill anymore. Maybe it will come together eventually! 😀

Brian had a cold mocha delivered to the building this afternoon. He’s working, but texted me to let me know it had been delivered, so I could go downstairs and get it. He seems to always be thinking of me. I am such a lucky woman.

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December 8, 2024 · 10:05 am

Sunday Thoughts 12-8-2024

Handmade – eBay

I think we can all use a good, strong hug these days as we face challenges personally and world-wide. Here is mine to you.

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Synergetic Play Therapy Institute

I’ve been having a busy, happy time in my art room. I’m going to add personalizable, hand-wood-burned, hand-painted bookmarks to HandmadeHavenbyLinda on Etsy at the beginning of next year. I’m trying all kinds of different techniques, grinning as I enjoy listening to music and experiment. Here’s a sample –

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I’m working on getting our Christmas cards ready to mail in the coming week. My husband had no interest in dictating a Christmas letter this year, but he wants me to write a note in each.

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Voyagers K9 Apparel

We’re still in a drought situation here, so I’m happy that we might get some much-needed relief here this afternoon. We’re supposed to get “light rain” from about 10 this morning until around 5 this afternoon. Hope the forecasters are right!

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We’ll watch the KC Chiefs game this evening. Every game so far has been a nail-biter, not knowing who will win until the final moments. I LOVE it when teams are evenly matched. I wouldn’t even THINK of ever attending a game live. I tend to switch allegiances over and over during a game, rooting for the underdog so the game will be close again. I’m sure die-hard fans would squash me like an odious bug. :0)

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Enjoy your Sunday. Make it a fun one!

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August 30, 2024 · 7:54 am

Friday 8-30-2024

Hanzos Midjourney Showcase-AI-instagram.com

I’m feeling a bit like a zombie this morning. I had to get up several times in the night, had real trouble finding a comfortable position, and then had bad dreams. I’m looking forward to a nice nap after lunch.

We’re supposed to have cooler temperatures and rain off and on from today through Sunday. I’ll selfishly take it. :0)

Etsy has a thing new to me where they mark your listings so you can see their suggestions for improving visibility. I have several listings where I only have one image, and they are suggesting that I have more, so I started yesterday editing those listings. It looks like it’ll take at least a couple more days to go through all of them. It could be a good thing.

I worked on two new wood burned pieces yesterday. I’m making plaques with pegs for leashes and such – one for dogs and the other for cats. I got a good start, and am having fun trying different techniques.

I hope you have a fun Friday and a great holiday weekend.

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August 11, 2024 · 9:49 am

“Rinse, Repeat”

Himanshu Choudhary-Unsplash.com

I’m tired today. The day before yesterday I spent two full hours weeding in the flower planters in the hot sun. I did two sessions, resting in-between, but it was more than this old lady can handle with grace. I woke up really stiff and sore yesterday.

I took Tylenol, then finished the weeding, then did a session of old lady yoga stretches in the afternoon, and finished that off with a hot shower before bed last night.

Though I’m better this morning, a “Rinse-repeat” session today of the yoga and hot shower should get me back to normal.

The sky is almost black now with a pretty good rain. This is supposed to last essentially all day – until 5 pm, so no outside work, which is why I was pushing so hard to get the weeding finished the last two days.

My husband just came downstairs, having caught up on some of the sleep he’s been missing lately. We’ll enjoy being in a nice dry house, looking out at all the rain from time to time, having a quiet day.

Vacuuming and art room time are in my future this afternoon.

I hope that you’re safe from whatever weather is surrounding you today, enjoying a nice Sunday.

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July 27, 2024 · 9:04 am

Saturday 7-27-2024

Nora – Pinterest

These are too cute to EAT. I love the creativity some people show with food. Maybe if I find someone who will make things like this for ME, I can lose all the weight I would like because EVERYTHING is simply TOO CUTE TO EAT. :0)

I’m an emotional eater – of course, ANY excuse will do. Yesterday it was because my husband yelled at me – after asking for my help – when I was insisting that he wasn’t giving Microsoft what it was demanding in order to sign in. I left the room, and then proceeded to eat our dinner hot dogs with actual BUNS instead of the Mission tortillas that have no carbs, PLUS I ate potato chips, sabotaging my lose-the-lard efforts for the day.

I’m patting myself on the head a bit this morning that I DID vacuum all the tiled areas on our first floor yesterday – pantry, kitchen, utility room, dining area, walkway to the living room, and two half baths. Today I’ll do the carpeted areas on the first floor, plus our bedroom and master bath upstairs. I’m amazed that Amber isn’t completely bald after vacuuming up the equivalent of at least one dog yesterday.

We had the nicest short rain yesterday afternoon and have a chance for a repeat today. I hope we get it because it looks like we have quite the dry spell after that, with the temperatures soaring again. In a few minutes, I’ll check our tomato plants, fertilize, and see if I can replant any suckers.

I hope that you are able to make today a really nice one.

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July 21, 2024 · 9:21 am

Rainy Sunday 7-21-2024

Tail & Fur

It’s quite dark and rainy outside right now, even though it’s after 9am. It’s welcome, though, because we can really use the rain. I can almost hear everything outside saying, “Ahhhhhhhhhhh.” My husband is sleeping in this morning – a really perfect morning for it.

We monitored our irrigation system yesterday afternoon, and had to spend over an hour trying to fix a blowout in the main pipe coming from the well house. I insisted we take a break, since we were both literally dripping from the humidity, and then we finished the job. We’ll monitor things again today to see if our ‘fix’ holds and my reprogramming of the irrigation unit for the front yard was correct and works as it’s supposed to.

Because of this, I didn’t get up to my art room yesterday. I’m having a really good time working on two new pieces of wood-burning. I’m improving, although it’s hard to judge because finding hand-done wood-burning designs now is difficult. Most of the ones on Etsy are machine-guided, like we do when we cut out a new mailbox decoration using a computer for the cut out on the sheet metal. Of course, they look really wonderful, but I’m trying to do ONE one-of-a-kind piece at a time, even though the art form has already left me in the dust. :0)

Make this a wonderful day.

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July 8, 2024 · 9:14 am

Monday, Monday 7-8-2024

PsychoBitch – Anne Balaban’s Blog – Goodreads.com

We have an 80% chance of rain starting today at around 10:00 and continuing through the day. 90% chance of rain throughout the evening and night, continuing until around noon tomorrow. Between 9:30 and 10:00 we’ll gather and take our trash down, get our mail, and then be in for the duration.

Pinterest

I didn’t get to ‘accountability-for-my-trying-to-lose-the-lard’ until yesterday. At this point I’ve lost 32.6 lbs and 34.1 inches. Reasonable start.

I’m planning to spend time in my art room again today, experimenting with my new wood burning kit. No information came with it, so I’m finding some YouTube videos on the wire tips to watch and then experimenting.

Amazon

I bought two very small (3oz. ‘cosmetic’) spray water bottles while we were out yesterday. The minute Jet saw them, she knew what they were! All I had to do was START to reach for one (at my computer desk or beside my chair in the living room) and the cat stopped what she was doing. This morning my husband, of course, ignored the signs she was sending out that she didn’t want to be petted right now and he started to pet her anyway. She opened her mouth to bite him and I shot her with the spray. She stopped, mouth open, and got up and left without biting. Maybe I can train BOTH of them to change their behavior…

My husband just asked me if we could have hot dogs for dinner this evening. Since I found Mission Zero Net Carbs Tortillas, I can say, “Yes!” :0) He eats his with regular hot dog buns plus a side of chips and some baked beans. I have mine with the tortillas. Happy grins.

Spreadshirt

My husband and I are stupid (you already knew that) and have to learn the same lessons over and over. The latest example is concerning our dog, Amber. We’ve changed her food because her tummy seemed to be reacting badly to the dog crunchies we were including in her food. We switched to just giving her canned dog food. This has stopped the tummy problems. She is a very food-driven dog, though – hence the foraging in the kitchen.

Last night we were eating dinner in the living room, watching 60 Minutes. We heard a sound we couldn’t identify. We got up to investigate. Amber was standing at the stove, trying to reach and eat the spaghetti sauce that was still in the skillet. ARRRRGH. We had forgotten to bring her into the living room with us and close the dog gate until we got things put away and cleaned up. AGAIN.

My husband decided he wanted to again see if she can handle the crunchies. We agreed that we would make sure she was enclosed on the tiled areas after eating today in case she had problems. I got up this morning and let her out. When she came back in, my husband let her in with him in the living room. I asked him if he fed her crunchies this morning. He said, “yes.” BUT he wasn’t making sure she was on the tiled areas…. And so it goes.

Have a happy day.

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May 28, 2024 · 9:15 am

Tuesday Thoughts 5-28-2024

fourpawsquare.com

It’s quite dark outside right now, looking as if the skies will open up any time. Amazingly, I’ll need to get out and water if this bypasses us to make sure my tomatoes are getting enough water. My husband is making some repairs to our irrigation system, so we’re dependent on the rain right now. I’ve encouraged him to take his time, not working himself into a frazzle over it.

Our driveway people called yesterday, saying they are AIMING to do our driveway repair Thursday! Fingers crossed that Mother Nature cooperates at least a little bit, allowing them to do the 2 jobs they have ahead of ours.

Our trash people took a much-deserved day off yesterday, delaying regular trash pick up by one day. My husband got antsy about it. He decided that my information was wrong, even though the paperwork I have SHOWS they were off yesterday and that our pick up day this week would be Wednesday (rather than the usual Tuesday). So we gathered it up and drove it down. I dragged the can down, so now it’s waiting for them whenever they come.

Amber and Jet seem to have finally reached a point where they can walk carefully around each other – a HUGE improvement from the initial big hostility both displayed when first introduced. NOW the big push is to make sure they are NOT together when ANYONE is eating. Amber, our 95 pound yellow lab, has NO sense of humor or grace when the subject of food is raised.

We will also need to be very careful not to let Jet outside yet until we’re sure she knows where ‘home’ is. I told my husband I wanted to make that decision. So far, he will cooperate, though he is bad about paying attention to details, like where the cat is, or whether she is right under his feet, trying to trip him, when he goes out into the garage to replenish his drink supply, for example.

preppyemptynester.blogspot.com

I’m S-L-O-W-L-Y, gradually, making a bit of progress on losing the lard. I’m now down 27.8 pounds from my heaviest. I’m getting used to reading labels on things and trying to make substitutes so I can watch carbs and sodium, primarily.

shesaidbeauty.com-boredpanda.com

I’m routinely doing a 40-minute old lady stretching yoga session daily now. I’m adding another stretch every once in a while. If I can make myself, I’m trying to do some online 10-minute videos, such a exercises with weights for seniors. This varies all over the place, but it’s my INTENTION to do one each day…

I wish you a happy, safe day.

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May 6, 2024 · 10:23 am

Monday 5-6-2024

Kids & Animals – Andreas Roeth – Pinterest

We got a lot of rain yesterday. It finally stopped enough for me to tackle the huge bush (“Japanese Yew” – thanks for the app, ML) that lives in a planter on one side of our front porch. I decided to try to basically cut it down by half. It had gotten totally out of hand and cut off the view down the sidewalk when we stood on the front porch.

I got most of the upper half cut off yesterday. I’ll work on it more today to try to make it look better – not just LOPPED OFF, as it looks now.

I have most of the planters in reasonable shape now. I have one to tweak, and then I’ll tackle the pots on the deck next.

I have some zinnia seeds to sprinkle here and there in various planters. I always do this, forget about it, and then have some nice surprises later in the season. :0)

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May 5, 2024 · 9:53 am

The Next Day

@Britton65Sam On X

As the rain comes down, the lightning flashes, and the thunder bangs and rolls outside, I feel good that I did the weed whacking yesterday. My body is telling me I overdid it, and that a more serious session of yoga stretches should be in my future this afternoon.

It’s quite impressive-looking outside right now. It looks like it is late in the evening. We’re supposed to have ‘heavy rain’ until around 9pm tonight. Since we live on top of a ridge line, we don’t have to worry about flooding (we’re under a flood watch) but we ARE vulnerable to lightning, hail, gusty winds, etc.

Now, since I was too tired to use the leaf blower on the front and back sidewalks after weed whacking yesterday, I’m hoping that it rains hard enough – at least for several minutes – to wash the debris off. :0) The forecasters are saying we could get 2 inches of rain today! I wish, on the other hand, the rain would be soft and soaky, since we’ve been under a burn ban for what seems like forever.

I have two ‘should’s’ on my list today –

  • office stuff (pay bills, April online bookkeeping, filing, general clean up)
  • vacuuming the tiled portions of the first floor (pantry, kitchen, dining area, utility room, two half baths) since Amber hair is floating around.

On the ‘maybe’ list –

  • Play in my art room

I hope that you can enjoy a really nice Sunday.

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May 4, 2024 · 4:47 pm

And the Rain Came

Craiyon

It just started raining suddenly as if someone had turned on a faucet full blast. I think it’s stopping now, but it was really impressive.

I managed to get outside this afternoon and weed whack. I did three sessions and finished the whole yard. If the rain stops and things clear up a bit, I’ll take my husband out for an ‘oooh’ and ‘aaaah’ session later. :0)

There are still lots of things to do outside, but I feel better that I trimmed things up where my husband can’t go with the mower. I’ll spray some KillzAll when things dry out to keep it all from just resprouting seemingly overnight.

I hope you’ve had a happy day.

I’m feeling devoid of any energy right now. Just drinking a cup of coffee and trying not to fall asleep, hitting my head on the monitor on the way to La La Land…

dumpaday.com

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May 2, 2024 · 10:45 am

We Didn’t Drown

Ranger Rick

We are home again, NOT having drowned getting groceries and other supplies, plus our mail. It started sprinkling as we started home, but we could unload the truck in the dry garage, so it was all good. Now it’s quite overcast and sprinkling more heavily, with harder rain starting about 3 this afternoon, according to the latest forecasts.

Does anyone know why the humidity is listed only as 78% when it’s raining?

Since it IS raining, the iris will have to wait until the weather is cooperating to be relocated.

Bankrate

One thing on my wish list these days is that grocery prices will come down reasonably soon. I realize that no one can simply wave a magic wand and bring prices down, but we didn’t even buy much today and had the highest bill in my memory. Depressing and scary.

May you stay safe from the weather and the grocery store. :0)

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December 15, 2023 · 9:43 am

It’s Friday! 12-15-2023

Cheezburger

We’re scheduled to meet our friends for Lunch Bunch today. I’m really hoping we have people show up. If not, we’ll eat somewhere and then do our grocery shopping before the rain is supposed to start this afternoon. We’re in for a couple rainy days if the forecast is correct.

I’m supposed to get the wood burning equipment I ordered today in the mail. I got the tool yesterday, and I’m supposed to get the goggles, mask, and finger protectors today. I’ll at least work on clearing up my drafting table today in preparation for trying to use both the Dremel etcher and the wood burning tool very soon. It looks a bit like a bomb exploded after my work on the glassware lately.

My hair is blowing time is moving so fast! We just started December and it’s half over. I struggle to believe it. I remember counting the days until Christmas as a child and it seemed the day would NEVER come.

I have really happy memories of Christmases past. One particular memory this morning is our family walking to a neighbor’s house singing Christmas carols. (Our neighborhood was two mile-long streets in Tulsa with each house on an acre and a half – 24th Street and 25th Place between Sheridan and Memorial for those of you who might be familiar with Tulsa, Oklahoma.) We would ask the people who came to the door to join us, and would then all walk to the next house, singing. By the time we finished, frozen and smiling, we had quite a group of people. We would gather at our house for hot chocolate for those who wanted it, and alcohol for the adults who wanted, all warming up around our fireplace in the living room. Happy times.

I wish you a happy Friday and great weekend.

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November 20, 2023 · 11:59 am

Thunderstorms and Hair Balls

500px.com

It was raining when we got up this morning. Raining when we went out for errands, and raining a bit ago when we drove our trash down to the bottom of the driveway. The forecast is for “Scattered (80%) showers and thunder – the top threats are pockets of damaging hail and gusty winds.” Sounds like the perfect day to stay inside, safe and warm.

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November 9, 2023 · 9:55 am

Thursday Thoughts 11-9-2023

Kairn Savage – @SavageKairn on X

5News

We’re due for a LOT of rain today. (We’re beneath the yellow and orange blobs on the map above, just to the northeast of Poteau and to the southeast of Fort Smith.) My SIL in Charlotte and my good friend in The Villages have both asked me to send some rain their way, so I’m trying not to hog it all. We’ll take a bit and try to send the rest on.

When I was cooking the other day, I opened two cans of what I thought was cream of chicken/mushroom soup. It turned out it was cheddar cheese soup! I don’t even remember buying or having it, but now I have two opened cans. I searched and found a couple of recipes that sound good to try to use up the soup. I’ll try one of them tonight. I’m hoping to have some leftovers, and hoping I can get them in containers and in the freezer this time before Amber decides she should ‘clean up’ …

Depositphotos

I got lazy yesterday and didn’t start weed whacking in the garden. I get a reprieve on starting it today, since we’re having the rain (started about 2 minutes ago), so I’ll switch to inside projects for the day.

Women’s Health.org

Shout-out to Cathy! She went for a biopsy yesterday. They did a scan to pinpoint the area before doing the procedure, and the ‘spot’ had resolved itself. She didn’t need to have the biopsy. WOO HOOOOOOOO! This wonderful news couldn’t happen to a nicer person. :0)

I wish you a terrific Thursday.

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October 26, 2023 · 10:20 am

Rainy Thursday 10-26-2023

Maximillian R. – flickr.com

It’s dark, windy, and rainy here today, but not cold. It’s supposed to get up to 80 this afternoon! This looks like the last week we’ll have of the unseasonably warm weather. It may actually freeze here over the weekend, so I’ll get out and get last pictures of our elephant ears.

To give you an idea of size, the “leaf” in the middle lower row is above my head…

Gardening Know How

I need to get serious about starting to ‘put things away’ for the winter with final weeding, trimming, pruning, etc. I’ll cover my raised bed square foot garden planter boxes with tarps for the winter and unhook our watering system for it. I’m not absolutely sure I’ll have a garden out there this coming spring. I’ll make that decision later, but I’ll take care of what I have. We have two planters of the six that need to be rebuilt, but that still leaves four I could plant.

Rasulovs – Getty Images – iStockphoto

My body is having a pity party this morning because I was scheduled for a massage. My wonderful therapist Lynn Moody 479-629-7601 texted me, saying she had been exposed to Covid and wanting to know if I wanted to reschedule. After waffling for a bit, I decided I didn’t want to expose my husband to whatever I might bring home, so my massage is rescheduled to NEXT week. Even my BODY is having to undergo character-building exercises. :0(

My husband worked hard to change another of our fluorescent fixtures into ones that will accept the new LED tubes. This fixture was 8 feet long, out in the shop. It took him all afternoon to do it, because the gnomes that live with us decided to give him as much trouble as they could devise, but he got it done. I think he has two to go, but those can wait.

He complained of the bedroom being too warm the night before last, so I turned the a/c back on to cool things down before we went up. He took a nice shower and managed to sleep really well last night, catching up for several nights. He just came down, and it’s after 10am. :0)

Enjoy your day!

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October 24, 2023 · 9:23 am

Exercise

Deborah Ann – Pinterest

I was SURE I was going to impress my scales this morning with another pound down, but NOOOOOOOO. I held at 13 off. Bah. Humbug. Since I’m being a ‘good girl,’ exercising, drinking water, watching what I’m eating, etc., I’m hopeful that SOON I’ll see some more progress.

0.media.collegehumor.cvcdn.com

The rest of the week is supposed to be rainy here. We can use it. It started overnight, with light rain when my husband took Amber out for her last outing of the day. It’s not actually raining now, but is very overcast. I’ll take whatever we can get.

Since it’s rainy today, I’m going to try to get my office under control – paying bills, bookkeeping, filing, etc. (I know – ‘Be still, my heart.’ :0) )

Maybe I’ll get up to my art room.

I hope that YOU are having a fine day – calm if you need it, fun if you don’t.

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October 3, 2023 · 9:18 am

Tuesday Thoughts 10-3-2023

We’ll get our Jack-o-Lantern mailbox decoration up this week. We have my husband’s haircut and a couple of errands, but otherwise, a quiet day.

We took Amber back to the vet yesterday. If the cone was OFF, she messed with the stitches on her arm. If it was ON, it aggravated the mass in her neck. Her neck started to bleed pretty heavily yesterday and the stitches on her arm were in shreds. The vet looked her over, decided she was healing well. The blood was draining from the abscess in her neck. End result – the cone is OFF. She is free to kick and chew whatever parts she wants. The draining has stopped for now. We are still giving her antibiotics, applying eye cream, and cleaning the wounds daily.

Unsplash

I’m doing several weeding sessions each day, trying to clear the area to the side of the shop that is between our house and the garden. There are a gazillion or so ‘weed trees’ that are too much for the weed whacker. I’m pulling them out, 15 minutes or so at a time, until I get to the place I can cut the rest down with the weed eater. When I finish THAT, my plan is to spray the whole area with KillzAll. There is no reason for grass or weeds there. There is some gravel underneath. So this is a multi-layer project I’ll do a bit at a time.

We’re supposed to get a cool front and rain tomorrow and Thursday, so I’ll redouble my efforts on the weed trees today.

I hope that you have a really nice day.

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July 21, 2023 · 8:55 am

Rainy Friday 7-21-2023

Unsplash

It’s dark and stormy-looking right now. Some of the forecasts say the rain will stop before we’re supposed to leave to join our friends at Lunch Bunch. We’ll probably go anyway, but we won’t go grocery shopping if it’s pouring. It’s nice not to wake up to fry-an-egg-on-the-sidewalk temperatures this morning. It’s only 80 right now.

My husband got the belt back on the mower and finished the yard yesterday, so HIS part is finished. I was going to weed whack today. Maybe I’ll still be able to do that later today.

I spent yesterday afternoon trying to find out why our American Express card charge wouldn’t go through for the meds I was trying to buy for my husband. The phone tree thingy said the card was fine, but the chat lady said the card had been canceled due to inactivity. We reapplied, were accepted and should get new cards in the next week or so. Then the NEXT time we order the meds, we can use the new card.

No time spent in my art room yesterday, but maybe things will smile on me this afternoon, no new crises will have erupted, and I can spend awhile playing. There’s always a CHANCE! :0)

Meanwhile, I wish you a happy Friday and a wonderful weekend.

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July 13, 2023 · 9:26 am

Thursday Thoughts 7-13-2023

facebook.com-youtube.com-Liana Ribeiro

It’s 82 degrees and I THINK has just finished raining here this morning.

My husband did some mowing right before dark. He didn’t finish, but maybe he can do more this evening, if things will dry out. I finished the second flower planter weeding. I don’t know if I can do more today or not.

Before

After – though beaten down a bit by the rain overnight and this morning.

The rainy-ness of the day MAY mean that my husband won’t sneak out a work on cutting down a tree in the “Dangerous Heat Alert” for today, as he did yesterday…

He may decide to substitute that for LED tube installation in our bedroom. I can’t say I’m looking forward to that, but as my mom used to say, “Everything is relative.” This means more to me every day. :0)

Have a fun Thursday.

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July 8, 2023 · 10:09 am

Rainy Saturday 7-8-2023

Chainsaw Art – Unknown Artist – Pinterest

The sky is dark, the doors are open to the breeze, a quiet rain is falling. The washer is running, my husband, dog, and cat are sleeping. A ‘lulling’ kind of day, encouraging laziness.

Freepik

Yesterday Lunch Bunch was a bust. No one was there to meet us, plus the restaurant had a closed sign on it, saying they would be closed from the 5th-10th. My only gripe is a lack of good communication. We skip breakfast on Lunch Bunch days because Kay wants to eat so early, so we ended up running our errands and returning home, THEN fixing a late lunch. No problem, just a bit of aggravation.

EmojiTerra

My husband states he used up all his patience in the Marines – patience for standing in lines, dealing with paperwork, people….. Now we’re dealing with the fact that MY fount of patience with HIS lack of patience is hitting really low levels.

The latest example is dealing with Humana. We’ve tried to insulate ourselves every way possible, but occasionally, they do need to communicate with us. It really gripes my husband that they send him an email, and then make him jump through a bunch of ID hoops before he can find out what they need to know. He’s been ignoring them lately. He yelled at his computer a couple of days ago because they wanted him to sign in again, and then give his birthdate. He figures they KNOW all this stuff. They contacted HIM. He left in a huff and today asked me if I could find out what they want. I’m still trying to get through to them…

Tenor.gif

On the nice side, we have a nice, gentle rain, no flying hairballs, a nice breeze, and no scary things to deal with today. We’ll take that. :0)

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June 12, 2023 · 9:19 am

It’s Monday 6-12-2023

Ryan Franco – Unsplash

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I’m disappointed. There was an unbelievable video on Pinterest yesterday showing a gazillion hummingbirds swarming several feeders. I laughed aloud watching them. I copied the URL so I could share it with you today, but no matter what I did, the URL wouldn’t embed. I finally gave up. I wish I could have made it work. I’m sorry. :0(

Today is the day the people are demolishing the bridge between us and town. We need to call in a prescription and go get it today, so we’ll go the back way for the first time. It’s been awhile, so I’ll pay close attention to the turn-off on the way home. I don’t think there is even a street sign there. I’ll try to find a landmark. Meanwhile, I’ll try to reach someone at City Hall to see if I can find out a ballpark estimate of how long it will take to build the new bridge.

We’re due for some rain today (yeah, I know. JUST what we need). We’ll get our errands done and then batten down the hatches for the rest of the day.

Peggy J. Hughes – FineArtAmerica.com – art; Anthony J. D’Angelo, quote.

Hoping for a quiet day here, and one for you, too. :0)

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June 4, 2023 · 9:20 am

Foggy, Wet Sunday

Federico Bottos – Unsplash

It was a surprise to wake up with thick fog this morning. I looked out our bathroom window and almost couldn’t see ANYTHING! It’s clearing up fast now, but it was surreal.

We had quite a bit of rain yesterday afternoon, starting about 2:30 and raining off and on almost until we went to bed around midnight. It’s so wet I’ll wait to decide if I’ll try to finish weeding my garden today or not.

We’re going to go replenish supplies at some point, but that’s the only ‘plan’ we have for the day.

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“I put my scale in the bathroom corner and that’s where the little liar will stay until it apologizes.” ~ sent to me by my friend, Marsha.

iStock

I’m beginning to see a pattern that if MyFitnessPal.com says, “You’re not eating enough” I MIGHT actually be down a bit on the scale the next morning. I had made the calorie calculator happy the day before yesterday and gained half a pound. This is NOT what I’m trying to do, so carefully went a bit under that yesterday and got the half pound back off. I’ll keep playing with it. I know I’m eating healthy, and have lost 7 lbs so far. What I MAY be figuring out is that since I’m not as active as I used to be, the 1200 calories per day may be too much. I’ll research it.

The big push lately is to increase our fiber without increasing our sugar overmuch. My husband is a Type II diabetic, although he denies this, saying ‘he has a sugar problem.’ Anyway, I researched and found a list of some fiber-rich foods that I know he likes that we can add to our routine. We’ll just have to be careful with monitoring his sugar readings.

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Happy Sunday!

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May 13, 2023 · 10:43 am

Saturday 5-13-2023

Tenor

You probably won’t believe this, but it’s been raining here – AGAIN. It has stopped for a minute now, and the sun is out, but we’re due for thunderstorms this afternoon and evening. The exact quote is, “Off and on downpours.” Oh, GOOD!

IF the weather cooperates, I’m planning to do more weeding in my veggie garden and check my tomatoes this afternoon. I did some yesterday, but the weeds have sprung up while I was unable to get out there, so there is a lot to do to get things good out there again. I may also do more harvesting this weekend.

The rose bushes I cut WAAAAAAAAY back for the winter are blooming! I took these pics recently, and I’ll take more to share with you soon.

My next big project is to move the deck furniture from the back porch to the deck and then use the pressure hose on everything to make it nice to use outside. Then I’ll be able to wash the furniture on the back porch, plus the floor. That will probably take a couple of days or so, but we would like to get ready to cook outside, so this will be the first step if Mother Nature is smiling on us soon.

I wish you a nice Saturday.

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