My Braces are OFF! What a Transformation!

My braces are off and I'm in clear retainers for ... well, possibly forever, although after my first year or so, I get to wear them only at night. But ... right now I'm in them except for eating and swimming. That's fine, it's taking me a little bit to get used to it, but it's such a strange and wondrous thing, to have straight teeth. It's something I've never had in my adult life. Let me see if the photos I took actually are something worth showing. 

In this first photo, you can see how very crooked 
my bottom teeth were, and how crowded my 
top teeth were. I was very afraid that the recommendation 
would be to pull teeth, which I wouldn't allow. 
Fortunately, Doc thought he could work a 
miracle, and he did! 

In this first photo are the plaster casts they made of my teeth before they started doing any work. As you can see on the left, which is my bottom teeth, they were SUPER crooked. They bothered me a lot. I didn't smile as often as I should/could have. I was becoming very self-conscious. 

I'm not much for selfies, I really don't take a good 
photo. But, as you can see, my teeth are straight and 
aligned. It's such a shock to me. I've never had straight 
teeth - ever. 

This second photo, although the lighting isn't good, are my teeth now. You're seeing them through the clear retainers, but you get the idea. Nice and straight, aligned, so VERY wonderful. I'm thrilled. So, for the first week, I get to wear my retainers almost 24/7, but after that (and I'll probably extend a day or two longer) it'll be wearing the retainers only at night and I'll look like a "normal" person during the day. My next appointment is in November, then at four months, and finally at six months. That's the end of my paid appointments. Anything more than that will be charged. It's been a super life-changing experience, and if you're on the fence about doing this ... I regret NOTHING and I recommend it highly. 

I regret nothing about the decision to get something 
done about my teeth. And I definitely chose the proper 
orthodontist to accomplish that. What a change!!!

So, since I'm running super late today and my story just isn't coming together and is due tomorrow, I'm going to cut this short. I'll be back tomorrow, hopefully much farther along on my story and ready to tackle the end of my week and a week ahead without Chickie. Oh, and Chickie and Chickie Mama were able to get their tickets to "The View". They're thrilled. It's not something I would have gone for, but if they're happy, I'm happy. Have an excellent Thursday - I'm off to the pool, and then ready for a hard workday ahead. I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Life's Milestones - Plans and Achievements

Today is a rather momentous day in my life. This afternoon, at 2:00 pm, I'm due at my Orthodontist's for the complete removal of my braces. It's been a long journey, but a very worthwhile one. I'm thrilled with my new teeth, and hope they won't look too weird, given that their surfaces have had a band of metal around them for almost two years. It will be absolutely WONDERFUL to have them gone and just a retainer to wear every night. I can do that! 

I'll be getting a set of custom retainers similar to this 
to wear every night. That certainly won't be a problem, 
and since I don't have any pets, they're probably going 
to last me for a good long while. 

Also, I finally got the final invoice for my treadmill in email yesterday. I'll transfer the funds over to my HSA account today and get that paid. If all goes well, I'll have a treadmill in my den within 2-3 weeks. I'm very anxious about that. 

It's far from an inexpensive purchase, but our last one 
wasn't cheap either. The one thing I DO know is that 
a treadmill in my household gets USED. I'll have to 
come down on DH's case if he doesn't clean it properly 
after every use. I'm going to be pretty picky about that. 

I had an online conference with my physician yesterday. We're both very unhappy with the bone density scan results. She set out a plan of action, and I started trying to set up appointments with the various people yesterday. I think I'm looking at next year for actually getting in to see some of these people. *sigh* I should have gone into medicine. It seems that it's an ever-growing field. Of course the fact that I'm needle-phobic made that an impossibility, but ... retail was a poor career choice - LOL. 

I survived to be able to write for the next topic 
in LJ Idol. I'm thrilled, and know that your votes 
made all the difference. I'm on to the next topic now, 
which is due on Friday! I have to get going on that. 
I have ideas, but ideas won't win me votes, only a 
good tale will. 

And I live to write another day. I survived the vote and have received the next challenge which is due on Friday. I have ideas for what to write, but haven't had a moment to breathe and compose. I'll HAVE to get something down on screen today, though. My stories usually come together in revision, not in the first draft, and I need to focus. So ... it's going to be a VERY busy day. Just the time at the orthodontist will take most of the afternoon. It's a good thing I've got a refrigerator full of food to eat from last week's cooks. I'll have to work six days in a row next week because of Chickie's vacation, and I know I'll be scraping the bottom of the food barrel by the time she returns - LOL. Have an excellent day and THANK YOU for your votes for my tales. Every vote counts and being in it for this long makes me VERY happy. Slava Ukraini. 

Braces, Fences and the Stanley Cup - Lots of This and That Today

My appointment with Dr DeVoe actually went pretty well. I have my next appointment in mid-August, and my final appointment and removal of all of the hardware in a 2-1/2 appointment on September 18th. I really wanted it before the Fair, but that didn't happen. But ... in into the end game here and it's hard to believe. I wonder how it will feel to not have hardware on my teeth! Maybe I'll lose 1/2 pound - LOL. 

Doc DeVoe is quite a young man, very personable and 
great with the kids. Since most of his customers are kids, 
that's rather essential. His staff is also excellent - very 
professional and well trained. They have a very high 
standard of care. I'm SURE I chose the right orthodontist. 

Today is a swimming day, so a short post. DH gets to tackle the fence, if the weather cooperates. He needs a specific tip for the paint sprayer that we own. I'm pretty sure we have it, but he'll have to look for it. If we don't have it, he'll have to check around for one to buy, and he'll probably start painting it with a roller. I think that's damned stupid. It's a large fence and he won't get much done at all if he's doing it with a paint roller (not to mention that the rough surface of the cedar will tear the roller up quickly and we only have a 2-pack of the correct size). 

Whatever technique he chooses, it's going to be a very 
long job to get that fence painted, and it has to be done 
every four years. We'll see. I don't think we ever painted 
our last fence, although we had the best of intentions. 

But, I'll let him do his thing. I found out a long time ago that he only learns how ridiculous things really are until he does them and they fail. Then he sits back and says "OK, there has to be another way to do this because brute strength and bulling ahead through the chore simply isn't working." I'll have to text Laura and warn her that he might be in their yard taking care of the other side of the fence over the next few weeks - on an unpredictable schedule. 

The Florida Panthers pulled out the win over Edmonton, 
in a hard-fought 2-1 Game 7 of the Stanley Cup. Bravo 
to Florida (even if I was cheering Edmonton). DH was 
delighted, he was cheering Florida, so his team won. 
It was a very well-played series, and a lot of fun to watch. 

Last night was Game 7 of the Stanley Cup Finals. It's been a GREAT series, hard fought. It worked out that the home team won - it wasn't that way throughout the seven games, but it's always fun when a home town wins and the crowd goes wild. Of course, as hockey fans they're going to go crazy no matter what, but it was a good thing. Now everyone can rest for a little bit before going back to the ice to keep their physical conditioning up. It's time for trades and deals and new hires and maybe a few people fired. Churning the waters - that's what the off-season is all about.  Have an excellent day and I'll be back tomorrow. I'm off to the pool. Slava Ukraini. 

I'll Celebrate in the Pool - Good or Bad, It's All Going to Work Out

Just a quick post today because I'm running really late for the swimming pool. First - great news from my Orthodontist. My teeth are doing wonderfully, and my next appointment will be at the end of June. He's thinking my final appointment will be closer to the end of Summer - end of August maybe, so I might ... MIGHT ... be able to do the State Fair without braces! That would be absolutely fantastic. It's been a long and sometimes hard journey, but worth every bit of ARGH I could give. 

I've had a full set of braces for quite a while now. It's 
nice to be looking at the end game. I can hardly wait to 
get the metal banding off my teeth! 

On the other side of the coin, I got notification that a charge for less than $40 is being challenged. I have to FAX in paperwork to support my claim that it is a valid charge no later than the end of the week. OY! Well, I spent most of Saturday gathering the paperwork necessary to support my claim, and I think I have sufficient evidence to support it. But fax? My store's fax machine hasn't worked in decades. I have everything collected in a folder, and will take them to the Fed-Ex store tomorrow morning. They have fax capability there, and will submit it for me. For a fee, I'm sure - LOL. It's an annoyance, but certainly not the end of the world. I could fax it from our new printer, but I didn't hook it up to our phone lines. So, no. I'll pay for the fax instead. 

We have an old fax machine similar to this at the shop, but 
it hadn't worked well for a long time, and I don't trust the 
resolution. So I'd rather have our fax done by the FedEx 
store. Their equipment will be quite a bit more up-to-date 
than our old machine. 

So, I'm off to the pool. I think I have a lot of celebration and frustration to work out in the water today - LOL. It's cold(er) and I think today will be rainy which will frustrate DH who would like nothing better than to be outdoors puttering in his garden for the day. We'll have to see how the day goes, but he might find the garden to be more difficult than he would wish. I hope all of you have a marvelous Tuesday, I'm off to the pool. Have an excellent Tuesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל. 

Seasons and Getting My Ducks in a Row - Focus, Focus, Focus

After a few days of Summer's last "hurrah", we're diving back into Autumn quite quickly now. It was lovely having a last few days of heat and sunshine, along with the rains of Autumn, but I doubt we'll be seeing temperatures in the upper 70's and into the 80's (F) again until next year. It's October, and we're moving into harvest and wrapping up the year before allowing it to sleep a restorative sleep over the winter months. 

The seasons will progress, whether we want them to 
or not. I have friends who are anxiously awaiting the 
snows of winter, but me ... I'm already looking forward 
to the milder days of Spring - LOL. 

My schedule for today has been thrown totally out of whack. While flossing my teeth yesterday morning, my floss caught and lifted the cap of a crown. I pushed it back immediately, of course, but dropped by my dentist on my way to the shop to see if they could fit me in to get it re-glued and cleaned. They agreed that would be wise, and managed to squeeze me in at 7:30 am with one of the dentists - probably one I haven't seen before. But it should be relatively simple, only a problem because of my braces. 

By this time, I probably have all of these things in 
my mouth. I caught the lip of a crown on a back 
tooth yesterday, and think it should be re-glued. 
It probably won't be easy because of the 
hardware, but it's necessary. 

I got a fair amount done at the shop yesterday, probably could have done more, but I'm not sure what the priorities are just now. If I have some time, I'll phone customer service regarding DH's website and find out why it isn't publishing properly when I tell it to. I also have a question about the photographs section - how I can get the photos to enlarge to full size when they are clicked. I'm almost done with that task, but almost just isn't enough *sigh*. 

If it's not one thing, it's another - LOL. My life 
never seems to be very boring. I could probably 
use a little boredom in it every now and again. 

I'm also tumbling my holiday cards through my head. This year's time has completely evaporated, and I may have to cut corners which isn't going to make me super happy, but will still be pretty and fun. I have to make some difficult decisions, however, and I have to do it now. I'm quickly running out of time if I don't. 

I need to get my ducks in a row. I'm running short on 
time and I have a lot to do. It's a year of broken and 
changed dreams, and personal projects are just one 
more brick in the wall that I'm making for 2023. 

So today will be a busy day. I need to cook, I need to clean, I need to find things that have gone missing in my craft room, and I need to get my ducks in a row. Meanwhile, I want to harvest peppers, start another cycle of dehydration for them, and grind up some that I've already dried so they can be stored and used. I certainly will NOT be sitting around today - LOL. I hope all of you have a wonderful day, I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Did The Election Accomplish Anything? Not Much, To Be Truthful

So, it's looking like my state remains Democrat for the Senate (we're not up for election in that race again until 2024) but went Republican for the House of Representatives. That's unusual for us - we're usually a highly Democratic state. But it's been a year where everyone's healing wounds have been scratched open time and time again, never to truly heal. 

Right now, politics in this nation is rather like 
scratching an open wound. It re-infects the wound 
and stall the healing action. What we need more 
than anything in this country right now is 
healing, and instead, we're pulling more and more 
apart from each other. 

It's looking like Herschel Walker didn't win in Georgia (Hallelujah), and Fetterman pulled out Pennsylvania for the win (also, Hallelujah). We'll still have a Senate split almost straight down the middle with 50 senators Democratic and 50 senators Republican. The House of Representatives, however, has gained a little bit more Republican representation. If that blowhard with the bad hair job declares another run for the Presidency next week, as expected, I'm going to be living in "interesting times", something I NEVER wanted to be involved in. *sigh*

Although it's not final yet, the Senate looks as though 
it will have a 50/50 split between the Democrats 
and the Republicans. That means, in essence, we won't 
get anything of any import done in the National 
Congress for this term. We're at a deadlock in 
this country - not a lot of middle ground at all. 
It's a serious problem. 

DH said he would have voted Republican for our Governor's race if Trump hadn't "endorsed" the Republican candidate (unasked for). He hates Trump, and simply couldn't bring himself to vote for anyone the bubble-headed idiot endorsed. Thus, he voted Democratic for Governor, and Walz won, in a tight race with less than 200,000 votes between the two candidates. This was a nailbiter election, and I'm glad to see it over (at least, almost over since final results nationwide still need to be posted). 

I'm breathing a sigh of relief on my Governor's race. I 
like Tim Walz, he's been a good Governor. I didn't like 
the platform of Scott Jensen, and I'm relieved that others 
felt the same. Looking at the state, it's again the urban 
areas that went Democrat, with the rural areas staying 
firmly Republican. No real surprises there. The Presidential 
election in 2024 should be VERY interesting though. Biden 
is going to have a VERY tough time of it. 

I phoned my Orthodontist late last night and left a message. One of the brackets has separated from the tooth it was glued onto, and will need to be re-set into the correct position. I assume they'll phone me back tonight and hopefully they can get me in early on Friday morning to get that taken care of. It's on one of my back teeth, and on the upper jaw, so not as crucial as the brackets on my lower front teeth. Still, it's a bit annoying. It's not scraping my cheek or gums, but I hear that slight metal "twang" when it slides or rotates, and that's a bit grating. Not the end of the world, but yeah - annoying. 

One of the brackets on my upper back molars detached from 
the tooth yesterday afternoon. I suspect it was a glue issue, 
and that it will be an easy fix, but since my next scheduled 
appointment isn't until January, I thought I'd better phone 
the office and see if they can slot me in for a quick 
repair. Hopefully they can do that on Friday morning. 

So, I'm out of here. I'm hoping to hit the pool between rain showers. The radar seems to indicate my 5:00 am open time as free from rain, and I should hit another pocket of no rain when I usually leave the YMCA, but the in-between time, while I'm swimming, will have a downpour or two. We desperately need the moisture, and it's warm enough that it's not snow or ice (I'm VERY grateful), so I'll deal with getting wet, if necessary. After all, I'm going to the Y to get wet anyway, although my intention is to get wet in a chlorinated swimming pool, not in a rainstorm. Have an excellent day and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Braces, Soup and What To Do With My Nuts? (No, Not Mental ... Food Stuff-LOL)

My first full day with the braces went pretty well. It's a learning curve, and getting floss between some of my teeth is extremely difficult, especially the back molars where I have a real squeeze of space. Still, I'm working on things and getting better and more efficient at care every time I have to brush/floss. I have found that wearing dental wax on the front double-bracket of my lower teeth is all that I need for comfort, and I haven't needed any Tylenol yet, although it's available if I ever do. I've set up a mini-station at the shop for when I need to brush after my lunch Ogre Juice, so I'm set on that. 

I am using dental wax on the center two brackets 
of my lower jaw. The two brackets are quite 
close together and they rub against the inside of my 
bottom lip. It was becoming painful, so I tried the 
dental wax to cushion it a bit and it works well. 
That seems (so far) to be the only area that is 
really bothering me. Everything else is getting 
better with practice - flossing with the braces is 
an art of angles, tools and frustration, but I'm 
getting there. 

I'm still not able to really chew well. It's a comfort factor and a difference in the alignment of my teeth from what used to be to what it currently is. But, I still had my chicken for dinner over the past two days, just cut up extremely small and added into my Roasted Peppers and Tomato soup. I'll make some more soup today - maybe my squash soup - that was a lovely one. I also have to make more Ogre Juice today, so my blender will be getting another workout, but not as intensive as last Friday was. 

I think I'd like to make another batch of the 
Roasted Butternut Squash soup. It was quite 
lovely, and I adore soups as the weather grows 
colder. (They're also much easier to eat with 
the braces than anything else I can think of to 
cook.) I'll make more chili next week. 

I'm a bit bummed that nuts are off my table. I generally eat nuts regularly, a lovely mix of delicious goodness. But I can't eat them now - no crunchy items and that specifically includes nuts. So I'll need to figure out some other thing I can do with the nuts I already have in my container. I don't want them to just sit around for more than a year - they'll go stale and taste horrible. I suppose I can toss them into the food processor and grind them down, but then what should I use the ground nuts in? Any suggestions? I'd appreciate any you can come up with, I can always alter recipes to fit them into my WildFit lifestyle. 

I'm thinking about making some nut and/or seed 
milks from the open nuts I have available to 
me that I can't eat now. It's certainly an option, 
and I'm sure my blender is up to it. Here's one 
recipe I found that sounds feasible. 
https://jessie-may.com/posts/how-to-make-nut-seed-milks

I am moving a bit slowly today, though. Not for any real reason, just am. I'm a bit cold, but that's not really a great excuse. I did manage to motivate and get to the treadmill for my 2+ miles as usual, but I'm rather "bleh" today. Still, it's a "day off" and that's a very good thing. Our temps are falling down from our unseasonable hot prior few though, and I'm really NOT in the mood for a true cold autumn/winter quite yet. 

DH was able to get his Covid booster shot yesterday, so he's happy once again. We had an appointment for him on Tuesday, but the drugstore called and cancelled it due to a shortage of personnel. So, I chose a different pharmacy for him and got him in early Thursday instead. He opted against getting his flu shot at the same time (I don't blame him for that decision at all), so he only had the one to deal with. At least he seems to be sleeping well right now - the previous two nights were restless and minimal sleep. Maybe his subconscious annoying him during his dreams - who knows? So ... I hope your Friday is fabulous. I'll be shopping and cooking for much of the day, and that's not all bad at all. I have every plan to be back with you tomorrow, so have an EXCELLENT day and Slava Ukraini. 

I Now Have a Mouth Full of Metal - First Steps on a Long Journey

Yesterday was "get my braces" day, and I made sure I was at the grocery store within 1/2 hour after swimming to get the few things we needed for dinner. I wasn't sure I'd be up to shopping when I got home, and I still had laundry and the other normal household chores to do on my return. My appointment was scheduled for 9:30 am, with a bit of extra time beforehand to meet with Holly, their financial person and my ex-niece-in-law for the payment. 

It's not the best photo of Dr DeVoe, but it's not 
a bad one either. He's very focused, but also very 
kind. I can't imagine his patients not loving him 
after their sessions. He's through, but gentle at the 
same time. I'm quite happy with my choice of 
Orthodontist. 

The payment turned into a minor gymnastic routine - I knew the money was in the account, but for some odd reason, it wasn't going through. I phoned the number on the credit card and worked my way through the automated menu until I could speak with a "real person" who informed me that they had a maximum of $5000 per transaction allowed, but that there weren't any restrictions on how many $5000 or less transactions could be made at any one time. Holly started working through this as we were speaking, and viola! It worked. Payment finished, braces ready to proceed. 

After we got the answer we needed, we jumped 
through the appropriate hoops and simply did 
two separate transactions for two dollar amounts. 
Success! I was able to go ahead with my appointment 
and get a lot of metal glued onto my teeth. 

I was one of several people in the main treatment room, and ended up working with two different techs and Dr DeVoe. It's an extremely efficiently scheduled office with patients in and out all the time for their minor adjustments or check-ups. I had originally been scheduled for 9:30 am through 11:00 am. I ended up getting out of there shortly after noon. My bottom teeth are the serious problem area, and it took quite a while to settle on what would work best. 

You can't see the brackets and grillwork on the bottom 
teeth well in this photo but I have put some dental 
wax on the two coils that stretch from the two front 
teeth, skipping two teeth and anchoring on the 4th 
tooth. The coils were irritating my inner lip, thus, the 
wax. After the new year, when I see him again, I'll 
be adding rubber bands to the far back teeth. We have 
to move the teeth enough to allow the #2 (& #3) teeth to 
move forward into alignment with the others. That's 
going to take a lot of movement. 

The photo shows the upper braces, and the white streaks on the bottom jaw are dental wax that I applied later in the afternoon to cover long coils stretching between my front teeth and my eye teeth. The coil will be the first step in moving my lower teeth fairly dramatically to allow for two teeth that are set back in my jaw to be pulled into position with the others. By the end of my 18-24 months, I should have a great smile that will have straight teeth on the top and bottom, but right now, care and cleanliness is my key. It's going to take some time to get used to, but flossing is much more difficult. Still, it's going to be well worth it in the long run. 

I did manage to get all of the laundry done and the dinner made, so it was a successful day, if a bit rushed and topsy-turvy. I can eat "normal" food, but not comfortably. I cut my chicken into super small pieces for dinner last night, but still ended up adding it to my soup. It's going to be an adjustment period, but I'm totally up for it. Moving ahead! Have a great day and Slava Ukraini. 

Dia de los Muertos - Braces and Book Recommendations

Good "Dia de los Muertos" to all of you. Today is a day to remember our beloved dead - ancestors, friends and those important to our lives. It's a day when the veil between the living and the dead is thin, allowing passage and messages to be transmitted to and from. Honor your beloved dead in your own way today, by honoring the good, and dismissing the bad; because everyone has a bit of both in them at all times. Today, concentrate on the good for your personal legacy of the day, and perhaps you'll add one more good day to your life. 

This year Hallmark has produced an ornament set of 
Barbie and Ken celebrating "Dia de Los Muertos". 
Gotta love it! LOL. It's a set of two and retails for 
$69.99. I will NOT be purchasing them, but for 
collectors, it might be a total win/win. 

I get my braces applied early this morning. My appointment is for 9:30, and I should be out of there by 11:00 am. It's a LOT more expensive than my tattoo, and (hopefully) less painful, but it's a bit more angst, although I want this and I need this. I double-checked and the funds were transferred, so I can actually pay for the darned things, and all I can say is it will be a total RELIEF to start finally eating "food" again instead of a lot of liquids. I'll probably stick to the liquids and shredded chicken tonight, but starting tomorrow I'll reintroduce some foods I haven't been able to eat for the past two weeks. Just a little at a time - tiny portions. 

It's a bit nerve-wracking, but I really like the 
Orthodontist, and I think he'll do a very good 
job with my teeth (and also care about me as 
a person - just as important to me). So, I'll 
have 90 minutes of discomfort, and I expect 
I'll have discomfort on and off throughout 
the 18-24 months I'll be seeing him. The 
results, however, will be well worth it in the 
end. 

I'm starting the next audio book of my series while swimming today. Looking at my list of the series, I still have 24 volumes after this one, so I'm pleased. I won't be out of reading/listening material for quite a long time. Not all of the books are as good as the first one(s) were, but that's fine. I listen to them while exercising, and rarely in between, so I don't have much chance to get too bored. I love the characters, so I can live with a bit of boredom in plot every now and again.  

Yes, there really ARE this many volumes in the 
Drizzt Do'Urden series. It makes me happy when 
I have a series I enjoy with a lot of books in it. 
It makes my reading or listening that much easier 
because I can just move from one to the next 
as I finish. This series will take me into 2023, 
so choosing this one was the right decision on 
my part. 

I'm also re-reading a short series (only two books so far, although a third is in proofreading as I write this). The "Memento Mori" series by C.S. Poe has been wonderful. I read "Madison Square Murders" earlier this year and was on tenterhooks until "Subway Slayings" was finally released less than two weeks ago. After finishing "Subway Slayings", I returned back and started reading "Madison Square Murders" once again, and am now finishing "Subway Slayings" for the second time in two weeks. I just love the characters she presents, whether in this series or one of her older ones. She's a very talented author and I recommend her books highly if you don't mind murder mysteries featuring gay characters. 

I've been a fan of C.S. Poe for several years now, and her 
newest series (the Memento Mori series) is excellent. 
She's focused on every detail and exhaustive in her 
research of her beloved New York City. If you like 
murder mysteries and gay characters, her books might 
be perfect for you. 

So I'm going to start my day out in the pool, take a VERY quick run to the grocer, and then head out to get my braces. It'll be quite a day. A chat with Aearwen late this afternoon to cap it all off, and (hopefully) a relaxed evening. I hope you have a fabulous day and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Let's Make It A Fabulous Tuesday - Thoughts and More Randomness

 It's a swimming today, so it'e the usual time-choked post today. That's OK. They can't all be "Gone With the Wind", sometimes they're more like "Aesop's Fables". Today will be shorter, for sure. 

"Gone With the Wind" and "Aesop's Fables" both 
teach lessons and life choices. One is a tome, 
the other a pamphlet in comparison, yet both 
have their lessons to impart. Sometimes days 
are like that too. Today will be more of an 
"Aesop's Fables" kind of day. 

It's crazy weather time here in the Upper Midwest. We had temps in the 70's on Sunday, thus my sitting in the backyard on Sunday which resulted in many of yesterday's photos. It was 64 F when I left for work yesterday, fell steadily throughout the day and was 50 F when I left. It's now 39 F. BUT, in a typical turn-around, that will be the low of the day and we'll actually warm up to 50 F by the middle of the afternoon. It looks like it will be quite a tolerable week for the temps, and I'm grateful. We've had snow by now in years past and as far as I'm concerned, the white stuff can take its' time coming this year (even though we're in a drought and need all of the water we can get). 

We're going to get moisture at this time of the year, and 
I would prefer it as rain rather than as snow. That's all 
temperature dependent, of course, but so far our temps 
have been cooperating. I really would like to avoid 
another snowfall until AFTER Halloween. 

I'm thinking about making two other soups plus a chili tomorrow, although that might be some overkill. I do have to make the "Roasted Peppers and Tomatoes" soup because I have the ingredients for it. I also need to make my Avocado soup - again because the 'avos' are sitting in the refrigerator shaking their fruity fingers at me. Maybe I'll do the two veggie soups tomorrow and a chili on Friday. Hmmmmm....

The roasted peppers soup recipe sounds like the 
perfect soup for a cold day. I've got the peppers 
and tomatoes, and they've got to be cooked before 
much longer, so it'll be a day in the kitchen on 
Wednesday, making two more of the soups. I need 
some more storage containers before I can to 
crazy, though. I'm missing lids for one type and 
a body for another type - frustrating! 

So far so good with the new separators for my teeth. They seem to be stable and I'm cleaning my teeth very carefully around them to try and keep my gums in decent condition. Of course, that's limited right now, but I can hardly wait until the 2nd when I can just get rid of the separators and get my braces installed. I'm sure there will be discomfort and it'll be another adjustment, but damn - I want to be able to eat something other than soup, I'm just being very cautious now because I don't want to jinx this procedure at all. 

I hope I have nice customers today. I had 
some great ones yesterday and was kept 
busy all day. That's how I like it. 

So, I'm out of here. Have a wonderful, fantastic and glorious Tuesday. Tuesdays so often get swept under the carpet between the weekend that was and the weekend that is to come. Let's give Tuesday a cheer, and live it to the maximum today. Spread kindness and joy and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Talking To A Blank Wall - Thoughts and Tools

Today starts out with a "bang" and gets busier - but I will persevere - LOL. I took a look at the various accounts, etc that I have scattered around and I think I can handle the cost for braces, although I may have to do their down-payment and X amount of dollars per month plan. I left a text message for my broker asking him to phone me today or Friday, so hopefully he can advise me on that as well. Talking to DH about it is hitting a blank wall, so I won't bother. 

Sometimes talking to DH is the equivalent of talking 
to a wall, so I just don't bother anymore. I can handle 
this on my own, and even if he feels it is ridiculous 
and a waste of serious money; it's my money, my 
teeth, my choice. 

It's one of those times when you simultaneously look forward to things and dread them. I know it's going to be uncomfortable, even painful sometimes. I know it will be inconvenient and that I'll have to change some aspects of the foods that I eat because of it as well. But, I also know that I'll have a much healthier mouth by the end of the process, and that my general health will improve as a result as well. Still, it's a big commitment - financially and with time (18-24 months is a long time), and once I've decided on this, there's no turning back. 

There is such a thing as looking forward 
to something with a bit of dread. I rather 
liked this reminder, however. The opposite 
side of that coin is a lot of positives. 

Several friends who have gone through this in their pasts recommended things to me - dental wax, ibuprofen, and other items which I will find helpful. I'll also need to learn to floss using those pre-threaded "orthodontic" floss mechanisms - that will be a learning experience in itself, because I floss regularly and can't imagine having to fight to get it done. I'll also have to be aware of the spaces between my teeth and make sure the gums are massaged, and, of course, I'll need to be very clear on my nutrition because nutrition is the foundation of good health. 

There are several different ways to floss while wearing 
braces, and this is one of them. These pre-threaded 
u-shaped appliances that I've seen in stores for years, 
have a thinner side that's specifically made to go 
underneath the cable of the braces. I imagine 
it will be tricky for the back teeth, but should work 
quite well. It's just a matter of getting used to it. I've 
added some to my Amazon cart. 

DH has a shipment to check in at the shop today, so that will keep him out of trouble for a while, and I have a very busy day working at home today - laundry, housecleaning, grocery shopping, etc. There's a ton to do. Fortunately this week isn't messed up, but looking at the calendar ahead, there are several weeks where I won't get my two days off and that won't be easy. Still, I'm going to have to manage, so I'll just start managing my life right now by wrapping this up and heading out to the swimming pool. Have a wonderful Wednesday and I'll be back tomorrow. 

Voting, Cleaning and Rewiring Electrical Fixtures - Work Never Ends

So, to start things out, please vote for my writing on "America" that I posted last week. Here's the URL for voting and, as always, it's under Engarian. 

https://www.dreamwidth.org/poll/?id=27243 

There are fewer of us this time around, and the field keeps shrinking, yet I'm still in the mix - the new kid on the block. I'm thrilled and so honored to be with these talented people. 

I've been having a great time with LJ Idol and am always 
amazed that I'm holding my own with some of the talented 
writers in the group. We're getting down in numbers now, 
and I'm still very much a part of the mix. Huzzah! LOL

Today is a dental cleaning and checkup day, so I'm cooling down after my morning run and I'll make sure to eat breakfast and thoroughly clean my teeth before heading over there. I find it amusing - and I'm sure each one of you does the same thing - that I'm cleaning as much as possible before seeing the dentist to get a semi-annual clean and check. We don't like to look like mouth slobs - LOL. 

I really hate cleaning the bathrooms and kitchen, although 
I'm always cleaning the shower and the kitchen anyway. 
But it's like those two rooms are never truly clean because 
they are always being used. 

My mother used to do the same thing before her cleaning lady came. She had a woman who came every one or two weeks to clean the bathrooms and the kitchen for her. When I was younger, it was every week, but in her later years, it was every two weeks. Mom would make sure the house was thoroughly picked up and ready to go, then whichever person she had hired at the time would clean the bathrooms and kitchen, and sometimes also do the vacuuming (especially when Mom got older). When I was still living at home, the three of us would always go out to eat that night so that the kitchen would stay clean for one day. 

I have all of the supplies, and I'm perfectly capable of 
deep cleaning, but I usually just don't have a ton of extra 
time available for such things. So I do a lot of 
smaller cleaning jobs - one wall of the shower, or scrubbing 
the kitchen sinks thoroughly along with the counters. 

I always wished I could hire someone like that, but I also don't like strangers in my home, and I'm capable of cleaning, even if I don't get to it as often as I probably should. Cleaning will move up my list once I've retired, simply because I'll have the right equipment, and the time to spread it out over several days - a little at a time is the best way to accomplish bigger jobs sometimes. 

There are so many different ways to wear braces 
these days. They can be in front or in back of 
the teeth. They can be metal, or the fittings 
can be clear plastic with minimal visibility. I 
don't know the plusses and minuses of each 
option, so a consultation with the three orthodontic 
people I am interested in hiring is probably 
justified. 

I'll also speak to my dentist about orthodontists and braces. I think I'm going to have to break down after more than 60 years of saying "No", and get braces for my teeth. They're getting too crooked and they're interfering with each other in a not-so-good way. I can't allow that to continue much longer without getting it resolved, because it's getting worse and worse. So, time to do something about it, despite the expense (which will be considerable - sigh). 

Our fixtures are similar to this, although ours are 
10 feet long and this is only eight. Ours are also 
more than 12 feet off the ground - we have very high 
ceilings. So getting up there to do the work is 
also challenging. I only have one ladder tall enough 
to get up there. 

One of the other things I have to do today is contact my landlord for the shop. We've been revamping our fluorescent fixtures at the shop, but the two we tackled on Saturday night still aren't working properly. Something is messed up in the wiring. I'll need the landlord to deal with those two for us - either by sending a minion or by coming by himself. It might be a late night if Gary needs to work on them after-hours, but I'll deal with that as it comes. I need to get light back into that part of the store. 

On that bright note (LOL), I'm out of here. I hope you have an awesome and uneventful Monday. Sometimes less drama makes for happier days. Please consider voting for my "America" entry and I'll be back tomorrow.