It's Going to be a Busy Monday

At first glance, the Swarovski Blow-Out Sale was a success. We sold a lot of crystal beads, although we still have a heck of a lot in stock. Still, I'm pretty happy with the results, even if I did have to work six days straight. 

If you only do a single thing today, let it be something 
that will put a smile onto someone else's face. 

I finally had a chance to discuss the plans for getting out of business with DH a bit yesterday afternoon while we were relaxing on the patio, enjoying the soft breeze, our umbrella table, and some alcoholic beverages. I'll be attempting to contact Cheryl again today. He was somewhat OK with the dollar amount I mentioned, but, like me, would like more details as to what comprises that amount. We're also realizing that we're on a schedule that will push us into November. Not super pleased about that, but it is what it is. 

I have no idea what is included in her advertising 
budget. Radio and TV? Billboards? Print media? 
Newspapers? No clue. I'm going to have to trust 
that Cheryl knows her job well, and I'm pretty sure 
she does. 

DH also asked about the advertising. She's got a separate figure for that, and we have no idea what will be covered in that - what venues and media will be used. Ads at 11:00 pm at night on a secondary TV station won't be very effective, after all. 

I have a lot of questions for Cheryl, and I'm sure she's getting 
tired of my bugging her, but it's going to be a serious commitment 
on our part - physically and financially. We're only got one 
shot at this and it has to be done right. 

So I have a lot of questions, and we're running out of time to get this signed and going. The business simply doesn't have the money to pay up front, but we have no idea if it is an up-front payment or a back-side one. Lots of questions. 

Rather than take two more trips, DH opted to overfill 
the weight limits of his truck and take the last wire over 
in a single trip. I'm quite sure his shock absorbers aren't 
going to be very happy with the decision, but it's out of 
the basement and will be out of our hair shortly. 

I hope all of you had a fabulous weekend. DH and I spent Sunday morning at the shop loading up the last of the wire he's taking to sell at the recycling plant. They're closing for good within ten days, so the clock was ticking on this option. The truck is overloaded on its' weight limit, which isn't good for it, but it's mostly smooth roads. Of course there's a slight glitch - we both have dental appointments first thing this morning for a check and clean. I think mine is at 7:30 am, and DH's is at 9:10 am. Chickie also has an appointment today, but I think hers is after 10:00 am. So he'll drop the wire off after his appointment, then head over to the shop. He'll be late, but I'm rarely super busy first thing in the a.m. 

It's the start of a new week. Let's make it a good 
one today and every day. 

So, have an excellent Monday. I've got to get moving, I have a store to put back together after our sale - signs to pull down, cases to rearrange. The life of retail - LOL. Enjoy your day and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

Entering Countdown Week - It's a Busy One and DH is Being ... Well, He's Being DH

It's countdown week and I'm starting it out with an appointment at the dentist for my semi-annual clean and check. It's a standard appointment - I make them in advance - sometimes a LOT in advance. I always write them down on the store calendar, because it's always all three of us in a row - me, followed by DH, followed by Chickie. My dentist is awesome, the cleaner, Al, is also awesome, and I won't go to anyone else. 

Dr Bernie and Dr Phan are fabulous people. When Dr B 
retires (which he's bound to do one of these days), I'll 
switch over to Dr Phan without any difficulty. She's done 
some emergency work with me over the past few years and 
she's been magnificent. As someone who's a total dental 
phobic, it's always a relief to find someone who's good and 
understands my issues. 

Apparently DH never looks at the calendar that's directly above the computer screen, where he spends 40% of his time. Apparently, although the appointment has been on there for months, he never bothered to put it into his own calendar. So, when I mentioned that he had Al tomorrow morning (today) at 8:30 am, he blew up. What had been a very nice day devolved into another argument and another crap ending. Not unfamiliar territory, but I'm getting tired of the scenery. 

I'm getting really tired of the mood swings of hubby. It's 
tiresome and distracting and upsetting. I'm sure there's more 
to it than just being upset at me - I'm just a convenient 
target. He's not a physically abusive guy, but he's abusive 
in some ways nonetheless. *sigh*

But, I filled out and submitted the forms he needed to fill out for him (couldn't do mine, for some reason mine didn't come through and I'll have to do those quickly in-house just before my appointment). But, it's just typical of the way my days have gone lately. 

I actually got a post together for LJ Idol. I'll link to it 
tomorrow for votes, and I do hope that I'll merit your 
vote to keep me in this competition for another week or more. 

That's why I'm surprised that I even got an entry written for the current round of LJ Idol. The theme was "hikikomori" which is something I had never heard of before. Apparently, it's a thing! Who knew. But I was stymied and almost ready to take a "Bye" week, when I settled down at the computer and composed a four-stanza haiku. I don't work in haiku often, but it's a favorite type of poetry for me, and these just clicked together like Lego blocks. 

Isn't this a stunning image? It's absolutely perfect 
for "on the bubble". Now ... if I only WASN'T 
on the bubble ... LOL. Hopefully my short entry this week 
won't doom me. 

I hope you enjoy this week's entry and I'll post for votes when I can. EVERY VOTE COUNTS. I was on the bubble for last week, and if one writer hadn't pulled out, I would have been involved in a "write-off". That's uncomfortable ground. I'm hoping to pull through to another week, although this time I really MIGHT take a bye since Sharon will be here and we'll be spending our time at the State Fair, not at my computers. Anyway ... life goes on, que sera sera. . I'm off and running on a very busy Monday. Talk to you tomorrow. Slave Ukraini. 

Dentists and Ice Hockey - It Was A Totally Wonderful Monday!

My dental appointment went quite well. No problems with my teeth, and the sore gum I've been fighting has no real reason to be swollen - probably a piece of stuck food from a week or so ago that caused the swelling and minor pain. My Tech took a quick x-ray of that part of my teeth to be sure, but there wasn't anything indicated on the x-ray, and it already feels much better today. So I have clean and lovely teeth once again. Next week is the orthodontist, and I should be rid of the braces by early summer, maybe even late Spring. Whoot! 

It's always nice to go to the Dentist and get a clean 
mouth and a great check-up. I've got a wonderful 
Dentist, and am quite grateful for his care over 
the decades I've been seeing him. 

I brought needles back from the shop (and subsequently found my box of needles ... of course - LOL), so I resumed work on the repair I'm doing. But I was too tired to be effective, and made mistakes that had to be pulled back out. I should have a bit more luck with it tonight, and will finish it out tomorrow before getting to work on another repair that I brought home because work time just doesn't seem to exist these days. 

All too often my time simply disappears. Apparently 
there is a branch of physics that is actually looking 
into the possibility that time is disappearing in the 
wider Universe. Who knew you could possibly prove 
such a thing? My mind is blown! 

Of course today is also a swimming day, which keeps me on my toes for my blog post. No time to waste in serious thought - just dive in, start typing and see what comes of it. In a lot of ways, that's refreshing. It means my blogs are, more often than not, straight from the heart (sometimes without my brain involved at all). I'll have to work on the latest computer work DH has asked me to do while at the shop computer, and hopefully I'll remember where I left off yesterday. I usually take notes, I'm hoping that's the case today - LOL. 

Kaprisov scored a "hat trick" (that's three goals 
for those who don't follow hockey), and so did 
Erickson Ek. A PHENOMENAL game and one 
which goes into the record books. 

Yesterday's hockey game was AMAZING. It was a mid-day game because it was a Monday holiday for a lot of people. My team was seriously behind at the end of the second period, by a score of 5 to 3, with Vancouver in the lead, and then the third period started and the Wild caught FIRE! We scored 7 goals in the third period. SEVEN. That's unheard of in ice hockey. We ended up winning the game with a score of 10-7. That game will go down into the record books and it might be a very long time before the various "first's" get eclipsed by another team. Go Wild! I wasn't watching it (and out cable signal kept going in and out), but I listened to it. DH watched the replay last night so that he could catch all of it instead of the bits and pieces he was able to catch at the shop. 

I'm off to the pool. Have an excellent Tuesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

All in All, It Was a Nice, Quiet Sunday

We had a really nice Sunday. Since Valentine's Day fell in the middle of the week, we celebrated yesterday instead. DH bought two racks of ribs earlier in the week, and I slapped them into the crock pot with our separate BBQ sauces, set it to cook for six hours, and let it do its' thing. Later, when we pulled everything out, it was "fall off the bone" tender. Perfect! I had bought him a mini "Death by Chocolate" cake earlier in the week, and he bought me a small carton of my favorite "ice cream", so we had a lovely dessert while watching TV. All in all, a good day. 

I bought DH a mini "Death by Chocolate" cake earlier 
in the week to celebrate Valentine's Day. He had it 
last night as I was eating my "Nada Moo" iced dessert 
that he got me for the holiday. Perfect! 

I've been working on a repair for an older customer.  She had a lovely beaded trivet - you know, the thing that you put hot pots on, etc, to protect the table surface. Over the years bits and pieces had been repaired, but the entire center had self-destructed and she loved the piece. She couldn't guarantee that she had all of the beads, and indeed, she did not. I counted beads and re-graphed out a design that was close to the original, and settled down yesterday to bead as much as I could while we were watching/listening to golf. I was toodling right along when my needle snapped. *sigh* I know I have a box of needles in my craft room, but I'm damned if I was able to put my hands on it. So, I'll get another one from the shop tomorrow and continue the work during the week. It's a fun repair - these are the kind of repairs I love to do. 

I'm using what's called a "Big Eye 
Beading Needle" for this repair because 
it uses a 1mm thick cord - quite thick 
in the realm of beadwork. Unfortunately, 
the needle is soldered at the top and 
bottom, and one of the solders broke 
yesterday. So I've gotten some work 
done, but need another needle before I 
can continue the repair. 

Today is starting out with lots to do, however. I have a 7:30 am appointment for my semi-annual dental checkup (DH and Chickie have their appointments later in the morning). I'm not expecting anything bad - but I've had a slight gum infection in a back corner of my mouth, so I'll be sure to have him take a look at that. Next week I see my orthodontist, so it's going to be two weeks of tooth work coming up. 

I'm off to see my dentist. Dr Bernie (rear) and Dr Phan (front) 
are both fabulous people and excellent dentists. I've been 
seeing Dr B for more than 30 years now - we're growing old 
but we're still most definitely keeping busy. He has restricted 
hours these days - semi-retired - but on the occasions when 
I've needed to see Dr Phan because of an emergency, she's 
been wonderful. So I won't have a problem sticking with 
my dental office when Dr B finally retires. 

We're expected to bounce back into warmer temperatures again this week, so the few inches of snow we got last week will be history by mid-week. It's the warmest winter we've had in our state history and it's been absolutely delightful for me, although all of my friends who adore winter sports are quite upset at the lack of white stuff on the ground. 

Argh. just ARGH! 

Oh, and DH is now mumbling something about not being able to go out of business until NEXT YEAR IN APRIL. Oh no ... that's absolutely NOT sitting well with me AT ALL. So, on that depressing note, I'm out of here. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים למען ישראל.

It Turned Into a Great Day - It Was a Busy One, Though

Yesterday actually went pretty well. I'm one of those people who despises the concept of "late". I'm early. for everything. I've always joked that I was probably born before the full nine months of growth in the womb, because when pressed, I'll always try to arrive early. Yesterday's appointments were no exception to that. 

It was a stunning Fall day yesterday, so in addition to 
the blue skies and the charmed schedule, I had a 
chance to drive through and look at a lot of the gorgeous 
autumn leaves. They'll start falling pretty quickly now. 
The temperatures will demand it. 

I arrived and checked in for my mammogram more than 15 minutes early, and she called my name, did the 3-D procedure, and I was out of there walking in the parking lot before my actual scheduled appointment time had arrived. I headed up to my Orthodontist from there, and again, arrived early. Still, they have a very comfortable waiting room, and I always have a book I'm reading on my phone. My name was called, and the technician pulled my wires. Sure enough, the cap came off when the wire was removed. She cleaned it and put it into a small envelope for me. 

I now had some time, and it was 2nd Tuesday - a day when I try to get to my co-op for a great deal on my collagen powder. So, I drove down to the co-op, picked up my "ice cream" bars and collagen (they have a great deal on "wellness" products on the 2nd Wednesday of the month, and there was also a $3 manufacturer's coupon - bringing my usual $44 price down into the mid-$30 range). Putting them into the chiller in my trunk, I headed off again towards home. 

But there was still time and DH was possibly still home. I decided to do a quick grocery shop since I had the time, so I got the last red pears and four Red Lady apples to bake, as well as the chicken I needed for dinner and veggies, then headed home, got everything put away and the fruit cut up. I decided to head over to the dentist before baking the pear/apple combo, so put everything into the fridge to marinade and headed out. 

I arrived about 45 minutes early for that appointment, but was called in almost immediately, and I was out of there, crown cleaned and re-attached, within a half hour. Charge? $38! Sweet! I dropped off a package I'd been intending to return to Amazon, and then headed back to the Orthodontist. I was almost an hour early for my 1:00 pm appointment, but they got me in quickly, reattached my wires and the elastic braid I've had, and voila - I was through with the back and forth. Time to cook. 

The rest of the day was spent cooking - my baked pears and apples combo, and a butternut squash in maple syrup - chatting with Aearwen, and generally enjoying a lovely afternoon. I can't complain at all. It was one of our last beautiful Autumn days, and I had the opportunity to spend a lot of it outdoors, all around the Cities, looking at lovely and colorful trees and a perfect, blue sky. SCORE! Now, if my teams had only won their games yesterday. Oh well, I can't have everything. LOL Have an excellent day and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini and חיים לישראל .

Take a Deep Breath and Schedule - Tomorrow Will Be a Dance

A short post today since I actually slept until my alarm went off. Tomorrow will be absolutely CRAZY so I'm going to enjoy the relative "calm" of a Tuesday. So, here's the scoop. 

I'm going to enjoy my swim, and whatever happens today 
because tomorrow will be CRAZY! 

As you may know, I have a loose crown on a bottom molar. I went to see my dentist last week, and she said that it would be an easy fix, but that the orthodontic wire had to be removed before she could work on the tooth, So, it was a matter of coordinating between my orthodontist and my dentist. 

Tomorrow's schedule will be totally crazy - a lot of 
back and forth between my Orthodontist and my 
Dentist. *sigh*

I phoned the orthodontist on Friday, but that's a half-day for them, and they were closed. They phoned me back on Monday, and we started the dance. Here's what we've managed so far. 

It's really wonderful how everyone has managed to 
shift schedules to accommodate this emergency 
and get things done for me on my one day off. 
What a dance we'll all be doing! 

I have an 8:30 am appointment at the orthodontist to get the wire removed. My dental appointment is at noon, and I'm due back at the orthodontist at 1:00 pm to get the wire put back on. The fact that everyone has shifted and moved things around to sandwich me in is fantastic, and it's quite the dance. I'm most grateful that our weather isn't bad. With luck, and if everything works smoothly, I should be able to make it to all of the various appointments on time. 

Of course, all of this back and forth means 
I'm going to have to reschedule my Covid 
booster yet again. *sigh* Still, in the 
relative scheme of things, that's a bit 
more minor than my tooth emergency. 

Of course, that will blow tomorrow's Covid booster appointment out of my schedule once again. *sigh* Guess I'll have to reschedule ... again. Oh well, that's a pain, but not horrible. I'm sure glad I'm starting the day out in the pool, though. LOL So, have a great day and I'll be back tomorrow to post before I start this "Dance of the Doctors". Slava Ukraini. 

Today's Post Turned Into Veggies and Flowers - LOL

Huzzah, it's Friday. I have an appointment (so far) with my dentist, so I'll put off grocery shopping until after that appointment so that I don't have to worry about things staying frozen in the car. I could (and usually do) use my portable chillers that I always have in the back of Minnion, but it's not necessary today. I can easily shift schedules. I don't have anything I need to make except Ogre Juice for next week, and the veggies would wilt (slightly), even in the container. So I'll wait and deal with groceries afterward. 

I love fruit and vegetables, and try to have quite 
a bit of them every day. I have my Alkagizers, which 
are mainly vegetables, and I eat fruit with my breakfast 
and sometimes also with my lunch. I always have 
a salad with my dinner - have for decades. I love 
my veggies a lot. 

I was paying more attention to my peppers as I was making them on Wednesday. My check-out clerk, Polly, was telling me about male peppers having three lobes and female peppers having four. We saw that one of the peppers I was purchasing had five, so we figured that one was trans or bi-sexual. LOL It gave us a laugh, but then I looked it up when I went home because the whole thing seemed incorrect to me. Sure enough, the urban myth is exactly that - a total myth, and very inaccurate. The fruit of the pepper is neither male nor female, BUT the flowers of the pepper plant are both male and female, and it is that flower that leads to the fruit. Interested in more specific information and photos? Follow this link 

So the number of lobes is a myth, but there sure were a lot 
of photos claiming that the 3-lobe vs 4-lobs versions were 
male vs female, and that was one better for cooking. Such 
a bunch of BS! But an urban myth that has taken hold. 

My peppers from Wednesday's harvest dried up beautifully. Since today is an Ogre Juice making day, I'll pull out my new grinder and grind up the peppers while I'm busy in the kitchen. I don't need to cook anything - I have eight stuffed peppers already made and waiting to be eaten. I will get some bacon at the store and bake up the bacon, since I enjoy bacon on my salad every now and again, and I'm almost out of the last batch. All in all, it will be a more relaxed kitchen day, and that's just as well since it will be a shortened one due to the dental appointment. 

I usually bake my bacon - it's much easier and cleaner, 
and a no-muss, no-fuss way of getting the pound of 
bacon ready to use for my salads, etc. It's so simple, 
that I do wonder why I never did it in the past. Silly me! 
I won't pan fry bacon any more. 

It's getting colder quickly. DH spent most of yesterday planting bulbs in various places in the yard. Tulip and daffodils, mostly, with maybe an iris or two. He's been populating the new garden space he made last week, as well as some new areas in the lower yard that he dug up for early Spring flowers. I love seeing those early pops of color after a winter spent in shades of grey and white. 

I know he planted a dozen or so bi-colored tulip bulbs 
yesterday. I think the ones he planted were in pastel 
colors, but they'll be quite lovely in the early Spring when 
they start to grow and bloom. Hopefully they won't be 
eaten by our moles. 

So, I'm off to start my day. I hope your Friday is fantastic and I have every intention of being back here tomorrow. I'll let you know how my grinder works, if I get a chance to use it (and if I remember to comment on it). Slava Ukraini. 

Le Tour de France and the Epic of "Dune"

Today is a Rest Day for La Tour de France - a seriously needed rest day after two days of stress and strain in the Alps. But the weekend was magnificent and so much fun to watch. It was anything BUT easy, but kept us watching until the end - DH on his tablet and I on my laptop or phone. The end, on Sunday, was just below the top of Mt Blanc - absolutely stunning and with a BUNCH of exhausted riders. 

It was a beautiful Alpine stage and weekend - such fun to 
see the big mountains again. They ended on Sunday at the 
"top" of Mont Blanc - not the actual top since that was 
above the comfort level for the riders and spectators, but 
it was quite near to the top, so the vistas were magnificent. 

Today we start out with our semi-annual dental appointments. That messes with everyone's schedules. I'm always first one - 7:30 am for me. DH has his appointment at 9:10 am, and Chickie hauls in there for a 10:00 am appointment. 

Chickie borrowed a trailer similar to this from a friend. 
Claire purchased the trailer hitch and wheel boot and had 
them installed onto her car. They'll be driving to Montana 
next week, so everything had to be ready to go after 
yesterday. They're building a box to fit into the trailer so 
that they can put the desk flat into the box, cushion it, 
screw down the lid and take it back with them to Minnesota. 

Chickie was going to spend yesterday constructing a large box from plywood that will fit into the trailer she's borrowed from a friend that she's driving to Montana with her next week. They've got all the bells and whistles. The trailer hitch is a locking hitch, and they have a wheel boot for security as well. They'll put blankets all around the desk to cushion it and cover it, and hopefully it won't weigh an absolute TON so that it will be possible to get the antique desk up the stairs and into Chickie's half of the house. 

The best thing about the original "Dune" 
movie from 1984 was Sting. He was gorgeous 
in the film, and pretty was all he was supposed 
to be, frankly. He didn't really move the plot 
along, but he was some nice eye candy. 

We had watched Part 1 of the new "Dune" movie a week or two ago, and felt the need to see the original "Dune" movie again, so we watched that last night. Now DH will be grabbing the paperback from our library to read it again - it's been a while. I think I own at least the first six books, maybe even more. The world that Frank Herbert built on Arrakis was magnificent. Apparently there are 22 books in the series as of now, of which 6 are his:  Dune, Dune Messiah, Children of Dune, God Emperor of Dune, Heretics of Dune and Chapterhouse Dune. I'm pretty sure I own at least those six, and probably some of the others that were not by Herbert. It's a huge universe that he envisioned and, he said, there simply wasn't enough room in one book to encompass it. 

"Dune" part 2 is supposed to be released 
into theaters in October this year. We'll 
see if that actually happens. I won't see it 
in the theater (DH hates seeing movies 
there - he can't hear them properly. With a 
DVD, he can enable captions.) If it does 
get released on time and if the DVD is 
available for Christmas, I'll add it to my 
Holiday Gift list. 

Looking at the original "Dune" movie again, I can certainly see why the remake was done in two parts (second part to hopefully be released sometime this year or early next). I know they originally wanted to make it in more than two parts, but the funding fell through. Still, it should do a bit better than the original movie - there's just too much to compact into a single movie. Watching the original "Dune" is like reading a Reader's Digest Condensed Book - a taste, but no depth. 

I'm pretty sure this is the set of Dune books that I own in 
my library upstairs. The original "Dune" and the sequels. 
I loved the story - loved Arrakis and the entire idea of 
the worms and stillsuits and the Bene Geseret. It was a 
world of complexities and without easy answers, and it 
brought ecology into the mainstream, a rarity for any 
fictional book. 

So, I'm heading out to my dentist and to start my day. Since it's a Monday, it will only be DH and I in the shop, which means I'll have to fight for every break from the sales floor. *sigh* He doesn't mean to abandon me, but he works on his stuff in the basement and I help customers. Half the time he forgets his phone on his desk, so getting in touch with him if I need help is difficult. It's 1000% better when it's just Chickie and I on the sales floor. We actually get things done! LOL So, have an excellent Monday and Slava Ukraini. I'll be back tomorrow. 

   

I'm Starting Another Week of Work and of Jury Duty (Maybe)

I start today with my semi-annual dental appointment and checkup. They haven't seen me since I got my braces, so that will be a new thing for them. I imagine it makes cleaning and checking slightly more challenging, but Al, my hygienist, and Dr B (or Dr Phan) are experienced, so I expect no issues. 

I'm sure very few people's dentists are also in their state's 
Rock & Roll Hall of Fame, but Dr Bernie is. He's been 
a professional musician in his "spare" time for decades, 
mostly playing songs from the early to mid 1960's. 
Think "Beach Boys" and you'll have his sound nailed. 

DH and I spent yesterday watching football. Unfortunately, the Minnesota Vikings failed to move on to the next round of the playoffs, but the games in general were entertaining and kept our attention. We were trying to plan the week ahead, but since everything hinges on whether or not I'll be on the jury for that upcoming case, it's been hard to plan anything. Today is a Federal holiday here in the USA, but the store is open as usual, so we'll see what business we get. At least Chickie gets her day off this week. Last week she had to work for me because I was on my first day of Jury Duty. I'm just grateful to get one "normal" day before I head back to the Courthouse. 

The Vikings were a disappointment yesterday, although 
they had a great season. The Broncos didn't even make 
the playoffs, so I have no teams in the finals at all this 
season. Yes, I'm well aware that vikings didn't wear horns 
on their helmets, but our logo image does. 

Tomorrow, beginning at 9:00 am, each juror will meet with at least one lawyer from the defense, at least one lawyer from the prosecution and the judge. We've been assigned times in smaller groups or twenty and each person will be called in for an individual interview. My group is the 9:00 am group and I am juror #12. 

All I was able to Google with confidence dealing 
with my Uncle is this Application for Entrance 
to the USA which is in the National Library of 
Israel. It's possible that my Uncle and Aunt were 
both at Majdanek concentration camp, but I 
can't prove that at this time. That entire side of 
the family is deceased now (my cousin died 
during the early part of the COVID epidemic, 
although that wasn't what caused her death). 

I did call the Judge's Clerk on Friday afternoon to tell him about one thing I forgot to put onto my multi-page questionnaire. Namely, that I might have been sexually abused by an Uncle when I was very young. My Uncle, whom I adored, was accused of abuse by one of my cousin's classmates. I never knew specifics, only that my Aunt divorced him and my cousin wouldn't mention or speak of him again. But I don't recall any abuse at all. I recall someone I really loved being with who was always friendly, smiling and courteous. He'd sit me on his lap (remember, I was younger than 8, so I don't consider this pushing any envelopes) and we'd read the Sunday comics together. He'd also watch cartoons on the TV with me. 

I'm not sure where we'll be meeting with the Judge and 
attorneys, but do know each person will be interviewed 
privately, without the other jurors present. It should be 
interesting, at least. It's certainly a lot different than 
any jury seating I've ever seen or been part of before. 

The Clerk said that the Judge may want to discuss this privately with me tomorrow, and I said I was just fine with that. I truly didn't think about it because I don't know whether I was abused or not. It was a LONG time ago - more than 60 years. I have no idea if the Judge will consider this pertinent, but thought I should at least mention it. 

I hope all of you had a relaxing weekend. Since I won't really have any "news" until Wednesday, my life is up in the air until then; so I'm just going to do what I need to do and move onward from there. Have an excellent Monday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

So - Braces For An Adult? - Sure, But It's Expensive and Won't Be a Quick Fix

Yesterday's tight schedule ended up working quite well, getting me to the office shortly after 9:00 am - plenty of time to uncover the cases and get the computers up before opening at 10:00 am. I spent a full hour with the Orthodontist and assorted staff, almost half-an-hour with his exam after a thorough round of photographs, 3-D x-rays, and a medical history. His exam was extremely detailed. 

My bottom teeth are very crowded and yes, I 
do find it difficult to floss them now and again 
(although I NEVER miss a day). When this 
process is complete, that crowding will 
be lessened - not eliminated, but better. 

The crowding of my teeth in my upper jaw is minimal, but the crowding of my teeth in my lower jaw is severe, which was exactly as I had thought. The entire procedure will take 18-24 months - a long time, and it's not going to be a 100% straightness for the lower jaw. To do that would require removing one or two teeth, and they're actually in good shape, so we're not doing that. We'll move them slowly and inexorably to a new position through bands, pressure and time. 

I'll probably end up with something quite similar 
to this - clear on my top front teeth, metal on the 
rest of them. This photo doesn't show the banding 
necessary for my crowns. I think that'll be the 
hardest thing for me. 

I liked him quite a bit, and have set up two more appointments with him. The next one, on October 19th, will be for mouth molds, etc so that the retainers for night wear can be made, and any appliances can be customized. The second, on November 2nd will be to apply the actual braces. That one will be a longer one - it's going to take time. The standard brackets aren't a problem for my teeth, but they won't stick to crowns, and I have several of those on my rear bottom teeth. The crowns will have brackets installed over them instead - like a necklace holding the bracket into position. I suspect that's going to be thoroughly uncomfortable and a bit scary. 

I suspect the band around each of my 
crowns will be similar to this. I'm most 
afraid of these digging into my gums. 
I'm sure I'll have additional questions next 
time I'm there, but this is something I 
really want to do for my general health, 
so I'll buck up and deal with it as necessary. 
I think I'll also call my dentist for their 
opinion on the bands and my crowns. 

There will be some rubber band use to help the teeth move appropriately, so I'll have to get good with replacing those bands often because they are removed when I eat, and replaced with new ones afterwards. I'll have to look into foods that I can eat instead of my grains - I love my grains but they probably will be ill-advised while wearing the braces. 

It's going to be expensive. I left a call for my 
broker asking him to call me on Wednesday 
or Friday to see about getting the funds 
I need pulled out of my account. *sigh*

So, I'm talking to my broker later this week about financing this. DH refuses to help out at all, so it's all up to me and it's EXPENSIVE. Almost $8000! There are three different payment options available, and I'll discuss them with my broker to see what he advises, but no matter which way I choose, I'll need almost $2500 down before work can start. Ouch! Still, it's something I've wanted for more than half of my life, and it's a health issue. I think it's extremely important. So, I'm going ahead with it. I'll have to remind myself of the positives when my teeth are hurting later this year - LOL.  Meanwhile, I'm off to the pool. Have an excellent Tuesday and Slava Ukraini. 

BTW - on that note, I noticed Putin gave Russian citizenship to Edward Snowden yesterday. I had to laugh. Does that mean that Snowden will now be conscripted and sent to the Eastern Front of Ukraine? 

Dentists, Doctors and Light - My Schedule is Toast!

I passed my dental appointment with flying colors, and had a chance to discuss braces with both Dr B and Dr Phan, as well as my long-time tech, Al. All agreed that my teeth were very crowded, and although my gums and teeth were in excellent condition, braces may not be a bad idea. So, I phoned up DeVoe Orthodontics when I got to the shop and set up an early morning consultation for the end of September (the first open time I could get for an early morning slot). I'm looking forward to it, and having something new starting in the fall may not be a bad thing at all. I'll probably also set up at least one appointment with one of the other two I had narrowed my choices to, so that I can make a choice between two or three options. 

Dr DeVoe apparently is a very popular 
guy. I couldn't get in to see him until 
the end of September. But that's OK. It 
took a lifetime for my teeth to get this 
crooked, I'm not in a major rush to spend 
the money to get them straightened. But I 
do want it done, finally - LOL. 

It's rather weird to be thinking about the end of summer already, when summer has barely started. But it's those things to look forward to that can keep me going. My landlord came over yesterday and helped with the lights. He found the problem in one of them and got that one going for us, and discussed options for the second light with DH, leaving him to handle the issue on his own. Which he did! After another hour or so of work on the ladder, he managed to get it together with minimal cursing. He made several mistakes which were purely stupid, but figured out work-arounds and now, after more than a year of darkness in that part of the store, we have light. I'll have to put used bulbs into Minion and add taking them for recycling into my schedule for tomorrow or Friday. 

It's quite delightful to have light in that darkened 
part of the store again. DH is "slightly" more comfortable 
with electricity now, but I'm not sure he'll ever 
truly be comfortable with it. The only rewiring that 
has been done at home has been my own doing. Necessary 
for one hall light that wasn't staying on. 

This week I get my two days off, but next week I'm crammed again - after my eye doctor on Wednesday, I need to come into the shop because Chickie Mama needs to be driven to Mayo for a consultation with her doctors that afternoon. I'm trying to get a ton of things done tomorrow and Friday so that losing the majority of next week's Wednesday won't mess me totally up. It's still going to be a PITA for the next couple of weeks, though. 

I try to have a fairly scheduled week because I'm 
always short on time. Next week will really suck 
because I won't have my laundry day and that will 
mess things up badly. But, I can't do anything about 
Chickie Mama's need to meet with her doctors. I'll 
have to figure something out for a work-around. 

I hope you followed my link and voted for my story "America", but even if you didn't vote, I hope you followed the link and clicked on some of the entries. There are some very talented writers in the group and some tales well worth reading. We're down to approximately 25 people now, so at least it's easier to read through the various offerings. I'll try to start weeding down my final choices for my own votes today or tonight. Lots to read and lots to enjoy. 

So, I'm out of here. I have a swimming pool calling my name, and a clear sky to greet the dawn. I hope all of you have a wonderful Tuesday and I'll be back tomorrow. Slava Ukraini. 

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.