no scam

 I got a strange e-mail today

    Basically, it said I was eligible for a refund from State Farm Insurance as part of a $5 billion settlement.

    It looked very official.  All I had to do was enter the claim number and provide information to direct deposit the funds.

    The e-mail was not sent from State Farm, but from a different e-mail address.

    I am no fool.  I deleted the e-mail and then e-mailed my State Farm agent about the scam.

    About 15 minutes later she called and said, "Yup...it is real."

    Turns out the company works through a third party to handle the refunds. 

    By not providing my bank info, I will be sent a check.  That is what the e-mail said.

    I have become scam scared!

    Better safe than sorry.

    We have not had an update on Beth.  I thought we would hear something today, but maybe the test results were not back yet.

    She is acting very normal......but she still has not had a BM that was solid. And she still strains.

    She was in the front yard squatting and straining when a squirrel raced around the corner.

    The squirrel saw Beth and froze, sitting on its hind legs with its front paws out like a boxer.  Both just stared at each other.  

    They were like that for a few seconds.  Then the squirrel scampered up our maple tree and Beth did not even give chase.  That is not normal.

    But aside from that, she seems fine.

    We are hoping for positive news tomorrow.

    Watching the flooding in Nepal is mesmerizing and horrifying.  I can't imagine what those people went thru.

Peace and Love

    Especially Peace

to mow, or not to mow

 I had a tough decision today

    Go sit on the mower for 2 hours in 90 temperatures that felt like a closed bathroom after a 20 minute hot shower,  or not.

    Granted, I never take 20 minute hot showers.  Maybe 10 at the max, unless my body is sore.  But never 20.

    And I did take 10 minutes to finish the small area I did not mow on Friday.

    The grass looked long.  I had time after PT.  The sky was cloudy.

    But I just did not have the desire to sit out there in the heat and humidity just to make my yard look nicer.

    So I will wait for the temps to come down Saturday or so and then mow.  I probably will have to run the sweeper after I mow,  but I will cross that bridge when I come to it.

    Beth had. 9:30 blood draw this morning.  Yes, I got there on time.  Our morning help took care of Jackie while I was gone.

    Beth has gone several days without a solid BM. But this morning, in front of the vet clinic, she dropped a load.  Luckily I had a plastic bag and a spoon, so I scooped some up and carried it in.  Then I washed my hands several times.

    I figure every bit of information can help figure out what Beth's problem is.  

    Now it is a waiting game.

    Emily's flight back from Wyoming was delayed about 2 hours due to storms in Chicago.  Jackie looked at the weather map and did not see any storms.  I am just thankful the carrier is being cautious.

    Meanwhile, the Cubs begin a crucial series with the Brewers.  4 games.  I am hoping the Cubs can win 3.

    They are a very confusing and frustrating team.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

Ear worm, again

 I don''t understand why this happens

    When I was a kid, a guy named Alan Sherman did a song about Camp Granada.

    Like Hi Lili, Hi Lili Hi Lo Hi Lo, I have not heard the song in years!  So why did I wake up having," Hello Mudda.  Hello Fadda, here I am at Camp Granada." running through my brain?

    And the chorus...."Take me home, oh Mudda Fadda, take me home, I hate Granada. Don't leave me out in the forest where I might get eaten by a bear"  

    If I remember, Leonard Skinner got ptomaine poisoning after dinner.  And a boy named Spivey was covered in poison ivy.

    Somebody was lost and there was now a searching party.

    Anyway, I guess I will Google it to see if what I remember is what it was.  Sometimes the memory is a little weak.

    But why did this song pop into my brain?  I have not heard it in years

    Am I regressing toward childhood?

    Are diapers in my future?

    Good grief.

    I went to a bench dedication at the museum today.  Jackie looked at the radar and it said rain at 1.  The dedication started at 1 and she reasoned it would not be good to be in the rain in a wheelchair so she stayed home.  It rained about 1:15.

    The bench was dedicated to Steve Strang, who was Santa for a long time.  He also decorated hay bales and helped with a lot of things around the museum.

    The bench was made from recycled bottle caps.  A local service club...I think Golden K?  Or is it Lions? .... (DJ will tell in the comments) collects the caps, sorts them, cleans them, and sends them to Indiana where the caps are melted  to make benches, picnic tables, planters and other items.  

    I think it is a really good program.  I did not bring my bag of caps today, but I will drop them off sometime.

    I also blanched 10 ears of sweetcorn, stripped the corn from the cob, and froze it. 

    But the best part of the day was sipping a coffee from Cypress House while reading on our porch.  And napping.  I need to do that more often.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

the plot thickens

 We got Beth's blood test results today

    Turns out, she looks fine but has some problems.  Her albumin level and cholesterol levels are low, which is ver concerning to the vet.

    He called in the prescription to Walmart and I picked it up this afternoon.  (I was stumped when they asked when her  birthday was.)

    Talking with the vet, he seemed to feel a change in diet would be a big benefit to her.  But he also wants to do another blood test.  So Monday morning I have to take a fasting Beth over to the clinic for a blood draw.

    I will also be picking up a special food that should help.

    We certainly did not expect this.  She acts fine, has been eating her new food, which will be replaced by newer food, and she has taken the meds the vet prescribed.  Not to be gross, she has not had a solid poop in a while.

    Our fingers are crossed that this is just a blip and that diet and medication will solve her problem.

    But we also have to change.....not so many treats and only, those approved by the vet!

    I decided to mow today.

    That was a late decision.  I did not finish the yard.

    I was shocked at how much it had grown since Tuesday!  So not only do I have to finish mowing, I may have to run my sweeper again.  I don't think I have used it in previous years as much as I have  this year.

    And my trimmer won't start.  It kicked over briefly but failed to continue running.

    That is a continuation of my inability to deal with gasoline powered lawn equipment.

    But tomorrow is another day.

    And it could be a hot one.

    Hope everyone stays cool.

Peace and Love

    Especially Peace

TGIF

 Beth had her vet visit today

    There was noting obvious concerning her condition.

    She did not have any swelling or painful spots.  They took some blood and a urine sample from her and sent them for analysis.  But the vet was upbeat about our puppy.

    Beth  is now on a bland diet with 3 different medications that will help get her stomach in sync again.

    Beth takes a heart worm preventative.  We changed brands this month and it might have been around the time her digestive issues started.  But the vet assured us it was the same medication with a different name.  I think I will Google that and see if I can compare ingredients.

    We also have to cut down on the treats.  That will be hard.

    Jackie and I had a nice time tonight.  Julia, Human Beth and Sheri came over for pizza and we had a great time visiting and talking.  No Emily because she is in Wyoming. 

    And I talked to friend John in the city.  

    So all in all it was a pretty darn good day.

    The only drawback was whenever Beth goes to the vet we get a pupachino  for her and vanilla latte  for me at Starbucks.  So, no pupachino for her today.  I felt guilty, and I could feel her stare at my drink all the way home.

    I think that was my first coffee of the week!

    Tomorrow I will attempt to get the bird feeder up.  That is day 6 of me saying that, if anyone is counting.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace

Yummy!!!  Maybe for my pizza tonight?

She always looks so sad.

chef Terry?

I don't know when I became a chef 

    But here I am, making complicated dishes with pleasant appeal, visually and in taste.

    Meat loaf.  Steak.  Pork chops. Left overs.  Dining out.  Left overs.  Meat loaf.  Steak.  Pork chops.

    See a pattern?

    Tonight I made left overs.

    And I made lemon squares.

    I have not sampled them yet, so I have no idea if they are good or not good.  Even if they are not good I will eat them.  That's me.

    PT knocked me out today.  It was strengthening my quads, hammies, back, and learning to lift heavy objects  so I don't damage my back as much.

    I seem to be building strength, but my oh my, my legs hurt tonight!  Of course they hurt every night.  And every morning.  But afternoons between 2:45 and 3 they are generally ok.

    As usual, I was tired this morning.  Our morning help is here until 11, and I figured I would sit in my porch chair and take a short nap while she was here.

    Well, she left.  I slept.  We even got a FedEx delivery to the porch while I was sleeping!  90 minutes.  That is how long I napped.

    Hopefully that won't affect my sleep tonight

    I plan on staying up to see the eclipse.  

    This is an unusual one, because in the past it has been cloudy, rainy, foggy, or all three.

    But tonight it is clear.  Unlike my mind.

Peace and Love

    Especially Peace

lost

 I have been thinking of Dolly Parton today

    Truthfully, I am not a country and western fan.  Sure, I like Merle, and Willie and Waylon and a few others, but I am not a fan.

    Then there is Dolly.  

    I have learned more about her the last 2 days than I thought I would ever want to know.

    Turns out, she was a pretty remarkable person.

    Talented, intelligent, humble....and generous.

    Because I a not a fan, I missed all the good things about her. 

    I didn't know she was one of 12 children, that her father could not read, that they were pretty poor hill country folk, that Coat of Many Colors was based on a.true life experience.  I also did not know she was a prolific song writer.

    I knew about the Imagination Library, but not about her redeveloping a block for businesses in an impoverished area.

    She was rich.  But she knew that being rich has a responsibility to improve the lives of others.

    Too bad some of the billionaires in our country don't take that same philosophy.

    Anyway, Beth is acting a little weird so I have a vet appointment on Friday.  She is not eating her food, and seems to have trouble pooping.  And she is drinking a ton of water each day, something she never did before.

    Hopefully the vet will have answers.

    Finished trimming the front bushes today.  Started in May.  

    I was going t trim around the house, but I could not get my grass trimmer started. I may have flooded it.....maybe tomorrow it will start and I can trim around the house, culvert and gardens.

    Of the 11 free trees  Julia got me from the state, only 6 have survived.  In about 40 years they may be providing someone some shade.

    I will remember next year and do a better job with planting and watering them.  Remember, we don't plant trees for today, we plant them for the future.

Peace and Love

        Especially Peace