I'm Actually Slightly Early Today - Not Rushed! It's a Miracle! - LOL

Today is a busy day - I have to work, of course, but I also have my MCD course in the middle of the day, and I start the day out with a good swim while listening to the latest book in my series (which I successfully downloaded yesterday afternoon). Apparently, when I purchased the audio book for this volume in the series, I inadvertently chose MP4 instead of MP3 as a download mode. My headphones require MP3, so I went back in and downloaded the correct format, moved it over to the headphones, and voila! Success! LOL I think it's the last book of the series too. Then I'll move on to a different author for the next year+ of listening. 

I have too much open space in my brain these days, 
and according to the doctors, that's a problem - LOL. 
I'm not super happy about it, but I don't think there's 
much that I can do about it except learn to deal with it 
as effectively as possible for as long as possible. 

I have my MCD (Mild Cognitive Disorder) gathering this afternoon. I'm looking forward to it. We're going to be discussing the foundational pillars of living with memory loss, and today's pillar is Nutrition. It's one thing in my life that I'm quite conscious of and that I have put a lot of work and research into. I'm pretty confident that I'm doing this aspect of living with MCD in a very thorough way. 

My "Ogre Juice" recipe always changes to mesh with whatever 
looks really good in the produce section of the grocery store. 
The only guarantee is that it will be green - LOL - like Shrek. 
Thus, my nickname for the beverage/food.  

Speaking of food, I harvested the last of my hot peppers yesterday afternoon, got them washed, cut and into the dehydrator, and I should probably try to find time to take them out of the dehydrator when I get home from the gym. But, I might let them sit there until tomorrow when I can pull them and put them through the grinder so that I can add them to my spice jars. We're expecting a weekend of below zero temperatures, so I had to rescue whatever I could. It was a good year for my peppers. 

My dehydrator was packed full of peppers when I got it 
started yesterday afternoon. I'll check on them when I get 
home from swimming. I had them on a ten-hour cycle, 
and I think they'll be fine to pull tonight and process 
(grind) tomorrow. 

So, even though I'm early (for a change), I'm going to wrap this up and start my day. I plan on being back here tomorrow for a "day off" and a "Make Ogre Juice" day. I also bought some fresh cranberries from my co-op yesterday and want to make my cranberry sauce. I love fresh cranberries - they're VERY tasty and quite easy to cook and pulverize. Have an excellent Thursday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Oak Island, Computer Growls and Cooking - A Busy Day

Oak Island is back for a new season, and they're really digging into the history of the island now - which is dating back firmly to the Knights Templar. I'm thrilled to be back watching once again - a devoted "acorn" am I for many years. This is the 13th season, so yeah - it's been a really long time with a LOT of money behind it. Without the TV show (and it's popularity with viewers), I doubt they could have gone so long, purchased the high-grade equipment they are using, and accomplished everything that they have. As a trained archaeologist, I love what they're doing, and not everything is "bring in the backhoe and start digging". When merited, it's true archaeology - trowels and slow, methodical excavation. 

The Curse of Oak Island has started Season 13 and yes, 
we took time away from watching hockey to watch the 
show (we're total "acorns"). I'm really looking forward to 
what they're going to find this year. They're stretching 
the history of the area farther back almost every season. 

I had wanted to load my next book onto my headphones for today's swim, but I'm in the wrong format for that book. It's in an MP7 format instead of an MP6 format. I'll need to run a file conversion on it later today when I have a bit of time, get it shifted to MP6, and then shifted once again to a file that my Audible headset can use. It's not difficult, but it will take some time and time isn't what I've got right now. So, I'll re-listen to a bit of the previous volume in the series for today's swim, and do all of the fancy electronic work this afternoon instead. 

My audio files for my ebooks are generally in 
ep6 format, but for some reason, the next book 
in my series is an ep7 format. I'll need to run 
a conversion software on the book before loading 
it onto my headphones because I can't listen to 
ep7 files on them. *sigh* That means I'm 
relistening to 45 minutes of yesterday's book 
today, but that's not the end of the world. 

I also need to get some household bills paid. Of course that's a simple matter of getting onto the computer, accessing the appropriate bank account, and e-paying the bills. But again, it's been a time factor. It's going to happen today because it has to happen today. No choices. 

It's soup and stew season now. We're getting colder every 
day. I'll need to pull the last of my hot peppers today, 
we're going to be getting our first frost within the next 
few days. 

Oh, and I do hope to be doing some cooking today too. Chicken for dinner, with thoughts ahead for what I'll make on Friday that will carry me through the rest of the week. It's soup and stew season now ... we're getting colder and more blustery every day now. A nice hot dinner will suit me very well. So life continues onward, chores are ongoing (today is three-load laundry day - a lot of laundry), and adding the electronic BS to the mix really wasn't something I needed ... but what the heck. If it's necessary, I'll just have to get it done. The real definition of life - live it and get things done. Here's hoping you have a day of accomplishments today and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Things Are Falling Into Place ... Somewhat (LOL)

My new audiobook is loaded, my headphones are ready to go, and I'm dressed in my current skinsuit, ready for the swimming pool. I awakened an hour early, and decided to just stay up and not be as rushed as I usually am on swimming days. So, I have a chance to breathe - a nice change in my normally hectic pace. 

I love my skin suits in the pool, and wear 
them year-round. I don't have this particular 
pattern, but have three very lovely suits. I wait 
until they go on sale and then consider replacement 
because, like all swimsuits, they do stretch out a 
bit over time. 

That will also give me three days to get my virtual programs unlocked on my treadmill again. I contacted the company yesterday and they told me what they needed, so I'll make sure to get that going - maybe not today, but certainly tomorrow as one more errand for my "day off". Listening to a book instead of watching a video works just fine, but I really do enjoy looking at the variety of scenery I get on the treadmill. I don't like just being with my own thoughts. I'm with them for far too long on a daily basis. 

I got in touch with Treo Wellness regarding my 
treadmill video programs. I'll phone them today 
and we'll get things set to upload on Wednesday. 

We all do what we can to relax from the pressures of daily life, don't we? DH plays his video game for hours. I can't see the appeal. I played it also for more than a decade, but it became too much "same old in different scenery" stuff and I got bored. It's extremely rare for me to be online "in game" these days. I'd rather have my nose in a book - my ALWAYS thing since I first learned to read. What do you do to relax a bit? 

I've had my nose in a book at all times since I 
was a small child. Having my books on my 
phone means I can carry an entire library in 
my pocket. So VERY convenient, and 
available at any time and in any location. 

I'm dressed for the pool, my bags are ready, my computer is packed for the shop - basically, today I'm ahead of the game. It's a nice feeling, but it comes at a sacrifice of an hour of sleep which I will totally regret by the end of the week. LOL Today, however, I'm enjoying not feeling as rushed as usual. I hope your day will move smoothly, and that any interactions you have today will be positive. I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Making Lemonade - the Treadmill, Books and Life Lessons

What's the old saying? "When life gives you lemons, make lemonade"? Well, today I'm making lemonade, or rolling with the punches, or finding new pathways out of the forest, or any other way of switching directions on a dime. I don't often have to do that at 4:00 am, but today seems to be one of those days. 

I've never really been fond of this saying, but I 
certainly seem to live by it often enough - LOL. 

I decided that even though I'm not able to access my virtual reality scenery and runs on the treadmill until I speak to Treo and renew for another year, that I couldn't use that as justification for skipping a second day. So I decided to listen to my current audiobook instead, which worked out just fine. I use my audiobooks when I'm swimming - swimming can be a very boring activity and I've found over the decades that I thoroughly enjoy the swim when I'm listening to a book. (Then again, I thoroughly enjoy life in general with a book in my hands, so expanding that to audio wasn't much of a stretch.) 

I love listening to audiobooks while on the treadmill. I'm 
a voracious reader in any case, always having a book on 
my phone that I can grab and read at any time. Teachers 
used to have to tap me on the shoulder to get my attention 
when my head was in a book. I should have been a 
librarian just like Sharon was, but archaeology called to 
me instead. 

So I grabbed my headset for swimming and listened to my current book on the treadmill this morning and it worked very well. The time just flew by. I also ended up finishing that book today, so it's time to load the next one. I've already converted the format of the next book in the series to MP3, so I just need to load it onto my headset to be ready to listen to the next book in the long series. I think there's only one book left after this one before I'll leave Drizzt Do'Urden and Menzobarrazon behind me and start a new, lengthy series for my swims. 

The character of Drizzt Do'urden is complex, tortured, 
sometimes happy and triumphant, often confused, and 
possesses a strong moral compass and a stream of 
compassion that simply didn't work well with his heritage 
at all. As a character, he's complex, a bit super-human, and 
shows unexpected angles that make him interesting and 
an excellent focal point for a LONG book series. 

I'll contact my treadmill people today and renew my virtual runs, although I really didn't mind listening to my book at all while on the treadmill. That actually worked better than I could have imagined. I still enjoy looking at scenery instead of a white-screen with advertising on it, however, so I'll re-up the virtual. Usually I listen to Sirius XM while on the treadmill, but I might switch over and listen to my books instead, while looking at my scenery. The only thing I'm addicted to in this life is books, and I have no intention of attempting to overcome that addiction ... nope! Not at all - LOL. 

There are many things in this world that I could become 
addicted to. Books are my addiction of choice, and having 
audio books as well as the ability to download my books 
to physically read onto my phone, means I always have a 
book available at any time. It's nice to not have to carry a 
physical book along. Since I always have my phone with 
me, I always have a book that I'm reading without the bulk 
of a physical copy. These modern times are a book 
addict's dream! LOL

So, I'm wrapping this up and grabbing some breakfast. DH awakened more than an hour early, which also doesn't help me get grounded and into work mode. So, breakfast and some tea will have to suffice. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Short Post, Short Sleep - Sometimes I Hate Technology

 A very short post today. I was up until after 11:00 pm trying to get my next audio book converted from Audible's format into an MP3 format and loaded onto my underwater headphones for my swim. I hate swimming without sound - it gets boring very easily. Finally, at 3:45 am I managed to get the file converted. So I'm operating on about four hours of sleep today. Maybe I'll try and take an afternoon nap. I certainly have no choices for my morning. I swim at 5:00, have an appointment with my orthodontist at 7:30, and then have to get the shopping done before I can (perhaps) collapse. Still, I'm breathing much easier. I did manage to get the files converted and loaded properly and I'm starting the next book in the series. 

I'm only four books from the end of the series, and I was 
going to be very upset if I couldn't continue listening while 
swimming. Fortunately, everything did fall into place, 
in spite/despite electronic roadblocks. 

I also have the first of several loads of laundry started, and it's a household day after I get through with the orthodontist. I should buy some tea when I'm finished with my appointment, but I'm tight on funds. I'll probably drop in just in case a particular checkout person is there. I have news about a mutual friend that I'd like to let her know. 

I'm getting back on track once again. I'm tired, but 
I'll manage. 

So, I'm wrapping this up and heading to the pool. I hope your Wednesday goes smoothly. Mine finally seems to have gotten back on track. I'll be back tomorrow, hopefully with a bit more sleep than I had last night. Be kind, Slava Ukraini. 

It's Not Starting Out Well Today *sigh*

I'm not having the best of mornings today. I realized I left my audio book waterproof headphones at the shop, so I have no book to listen to while swimming today. WTH you might think to yourselves. Yeah. Well, I listen to books because otherwise swimming is boring - just pure boring. I don't particularly enjoy boring. I might make a really quick post today and run to the shop before heading to the gym. I might not have any power to the headphones, so I'll be in the same mess, but at least I'll have them at hand. *sigh*

 

I use Shokz Underwater Headphones to listen to audio books 
while I swim. Other people probably would prefer music, 
but I've always had my nose in a book. 

Things were messed up last night, and that's why things are messed up today. Chickie ran a charge through the machine for $4 less than the actual transaction amount. Yes, I can get it adjusted. But it's a total PITA and took me an additional 30 minutes of time before I could shut everything down and return home. I'm quite sure that's why my headphones were forgotten. ARGH! 

I'm heading to the shop to retrieve my headphones. I'm sure 
they'll be out of power, but maybe not. At least I'll have them 
back. If I can't find them, I'll buy a new set today. I need my 
books in the pool. 

So, I'm going to do that. I'm going to take a quick run the opposite direction to drop by the shop and see if that's indeed where they are. So I'm wrapping this up and I'll catch up with all of your comments and your own posts a bit later today when I've got things cooking and have a bit of spare time. Have an excellent day and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Short of Time - A Quick Post Today

Just a very short check-in today because I'm running very late. I'm fighting with computers again *sigh*. I'm trying to get my next audio book moved over to my Open Swim Headphones for swimming, which means I need it loaded before Tuesday morning. It's always a fight now that Audible is owned by Apple. I've got the book (and hundreds of others) already purchased and in my library, it's getting the files converted to MP3 and loaded that makes things a bit more challenging. 

I use Shokz Underwater Audio headphones to listen 
to my books. I absolutely adore them and when my last 
set died, I was at the store buying a new set immediately. 

In that quest, I've purchased three different programs over the years, because none of them are predictable or dependable *sigh*. It's a tremendous loss of funds and time, but I need my audio books to swim, so I continue to fight. I'll pick the fight up again either tonight or tomorrow. 

We sent the heavier items via UPS - they should arrive 
on Wednesday. We sent the lighter items via Priority Mail 
and the USPS, and they'll be there no later than Wednesday 
also. I'll be contacted when they arrive at their destination. 

I've sent two boxes off to the auction house. DH and I decided to auction off items from our collection, we have too much stuff. So, we're giving them a test drive and two boxes were sent off last night. They should receive them no later than Thursday, and I look forward to getting confirmation from Janda. The actual auction dates for this shipment will be in the later part of the summer, and in the meantime, we'll start prepping for the next shipment. As I said, this will be a test run, but it's been an experience already! A good one, in most respects. 

So, I'm off and running (figuratively). I'll be back on Monday morning and I hope you have a great weekend. Slava Ukraini. 

It's Time for Questions/Answers - A Quiz Just Because

I haven't done a question/answer in quite a while, and this one from my long-time friend Alexcat, struck my eye. So, I' cheating today a little bit, and doing questions/answers instead of a news post. But, yesterday's cooking turned out wonderfully - a comforting batch of Roasted Peppers and Tomatoes Soup is now in my refrigerator along with several containers of baked maple-syrup butternut squash. Yum! So ... here you go. A question/answer for all of you for a change of pace. 

 Snagged from alexcat:

𝐀𝐆𝐄
Ancient - LOL, but I'll be 70 in May. 

𝐁𝐄𝐃 𝐒𝐈𝐙𝐄
Living room couch - very comfortable and works with my crazy schedule

𝐂𝐀𝐓 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄
Kitty 1 and Kitty 2 and Muffy. No cats now, however, I'm too allergic to them. 

𝐃𝐎𝐆 𝐍𝐀𝐌𝐄
Pookah, although she also is no longer with us. I also had Smokey and Ginger in my lifetime. 

𝐄𝐘𝐄𝐒 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐑
Blue

𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐂𝐎𝐋𝐎𝐑
Warm autumn colors - yellow, orange and scarlet

𝐆𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐓𝐒 𝐄𝐗𝐈𝐒𝐓
Absolutely

𝐇𝐄𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓
5'5 and shrinking

𝐈𝐍𝐒𝐓𝐑𝐔𝐌𝐄𝐍𝐓𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐘𝐄𝐃
I started with piano for several years, but have small hands, so switched to guitar (worked great ... but I'm double-jointed, so pressing over all of the strings on the flat neck wasn't very successful), and finally cello. I was VERY good at cello, was best in City (for my age range) for more than three years, and number 1 in the State for my final two years of high school. I played until college, but gave it up when I went into archaeology for my career. Carrying a cello to a dig seemed unrealistic. 

𝐉𝐄𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐔𝐒 𝐓𝐘𝐏𝐄
No, not really. Vengeful ... maybe - LOL. 

𝐊𝐈𝐃𝐃𝐎𝐒
Never wanted any, and am quite happy with a lot of nieces and nephews instead of kids of my own. I don't think I would have made a very good mother. 

𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆𝐄𝐒𝐓 𝐑𝐄𝐋𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍𝐒𝐇𝐈𝐏
My BFF Sharon and I have been friends since we met in 10th grade in 1970. The only one that would eclipse that is my "cousin" - my Godmother's daughter, Missy, whom I've known since her birth. I think she's in her late 60's now and enjoying her grandchildren along with her horses on the front range of Colorado.  

𝐌𝐎𝐎𝐃 𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐍𝐎𝐖
Trying to schedule my next chore. (Filling this out is a bit of a break on my "day off"). 

𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐎𝐖𝐋
No - absolutely not. I'm up before the dawn, though. 

𝐎𝐕𝐄𝐑 𝐍𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐒𝐓𝐀𝐘𝐒 𝐀𝐓 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐇𝐎𝐒𝐏𝐈𝐓𝐀𝐋
A couple for minor things. 

𝐏𝐄𝐓 𝐏𝐄𝐄𝐕𝐄.
I truly can't bear people who are unkind to others. It costs nothing to be kind, and it hurts so deeply when kindness is withheld. 

𝐐𝐔𝐄𝐒𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐓𝐇𝐀𝐓 𝐀𝐍𝐍𝐎𝐘𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔 𝐓𝐇𝐄 𝐌𝐎𝐒𝐓
"Are we there yet?" LOLOL

𝐑𝐈𝐆𝐇𝐓 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐃 𝐎𝐑 𝐋𝐄𝐅𝐓 𝐇𝐀𝐍𝐃𝐄𝐃
Right

𝐒𝐈𝐁𝐋𝐈𝐍𝐆𝐒
Although I might have some half-siblings in Germany, I have no idea. Here, however, I was an only child and loved it. 

𝐓𝐎𝐏 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄 𝐒𝐇𝐎𝐖
I'm not much for TV in general, but I do like the "Curse of Oak Island", "Nature" and hockey games. 

𝐔𝐍𝐂𝐋𝐄 𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐈𝐒 𝐘𝐎𝐔𝐑 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄
I don't have any, and the one I liked best when I was a kid was actually a bit of a cad. 

𝐕𝐀𝐂𝐀𝐓𝐈𝐎𝐍 𝐏𝐋𝐀𝐍𝐒
Vacation seems to be a foreign concept. 

𝐖𝐇𝐎 𝐖𝐎𝐔𝐋𝐃 𝐓𝐀𝐆 𝐀𝐋𝐎𝐍𝐆
See above. Can't have a tag-along if there is no vacation. 

𝐗𝐁𝐎𝐗 𝐎𝐑 𝐍𝐈𝐍𝐓𝐄𝐍𝐃𝐎 𝟞𝟜
I play games on my phone. Much easier than a different set-up. On my computer, I play "Lord of the Rings Online" as I have for more than 15 years. I do still have an original Atari. We played that a lot when we had it set up, but it aged out. 

𝐘𝐔𝐌𝐌𝐘 𝐅𝐎𝐎𝐃
I just restocked my freezer with "ice cream" bars and "Nada Moo" iced dessert. I also have some lovely gluten-free/refined sugar-free brownies in my fridge. 

𝐙𝐎𝐎 𝐅𝐀𝐕𝐎𝐑𝐈𝐓𝐄
The Cheyenne Mountain Zoo in Colorado Springs had a lovely black panther while I was growing up. I just adored that cat - would drive down the 90 minutes to do nothing more than to stand in front of the display and watch this big cat. Stunning! 

So, I'm off to the pool. I reloaded my audio book yesterday afternoon, so I think I'm listening to the correct book in my series now (yesterday seemed like a repeat). I expect a good swim today. Have an excellent day, Slava Ukraini and I'm cancelling my usual "Life for Israel", although the country does deserve to survive. But, after killing those aid workers ... NO. That's a firm "no" from me and I'll withhold my support until they get their "frightened child" act together and start acting like responsible adults. 

- Erulisse (one L)