Crazy “Deals” (?)

I stumbled upon a so-called bargain website months ago and have no recollection how. Considering my husband’s (greatly improving!) health and mobility issues, it’s no wonder I lost track. I did, however, keep an image for the purpose of blogging. Not only did the price make me cringe, as did the use of snake skin, but so did the structure.

I must admit to wearing a similar boot
but mine were of fabric and
had a straight heel...
Yikes!

Beginning in the mid 1980’s and only ending about a decade or so ago I often donned quite high heels, sometimes with very sharp toe points. Running through school halls, dancing well past midnight in steel toed stilettos, and then stubbornly refusing help carrying heavy items at work took their toll. As shared in 2023, I am very fortunate as simple footwear changes have relieved all pain and only my right foot developed a bunionette. Otherwise known as a tailor’s bunion, it’s named after the the tradesmens’ cross-legged posture causing the issue.

Isn’t it fascinating how medical conditions are named? Do you have issues with foot pain?

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Three Nice Surprises

The title tells what I shall explain. First, my husband’s debilitating pain has subsided; he is even driving himself to physical therapy and other doctor visits. What a relief for us both. Taking care of everything left me with a niggling case of tendonitis in my right elbow.

Then extended use of my left arm caused annoying if slight muscle pain around that scapula. Minor queasiness accompanied the frustrating sensation. While it’s happened exactly the same several times in my lifetime, healing takes longer at the age of 55 and I’ve been struggling for many weeks. But enough whining… Here’s my surprise win:

Knowing the grass needed mowing and weeds pulled yesterday, I finally took pain medication, something I avoid whenever possible. What a shock; all this activity didn’t bring greater hurt the next morning. I even managed to lift weights today.

Thirdly, I looked up bald eagle nest cameras online. This Pennsylvania pair has three (!) healthy nestlings. That’s a rare event.

When both parents are gone, one
eaglet always seems alert...

Do you follow any live webcams? Are there numerous raptors where you live?

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A Simple Fix

Sad to say, a while back my decades old flip flops began breaking apart. So I bought new from a local dollar store. This pair’s soles are thick and comfortable. However, the attached straps dug into my skin.

On a whim I tried swapping out the hard plastic with my old soft rubbery straps. It worked! If only I could wear them on a beach and not just to the pool.

Trading the uncomfortable
blue for orange suits me.

Ah, well. Now I have a linguistic question showing my age.

Have you ever heard flip flops called thongs? Do you prefer open or closed-to footwear?

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A Strangely Foiled Outing

On Wednesday I met my friend Scars to see a movie, “The Sound of Freedom”. My husband didn’t feel up to a heart-wrenching tale and gave his blessing.

Scars bought my ticket while I paid for our sodas. We walked into a silent theater. How bizarre. There should have been advertisements running and then previews before our 11 am showing.

This is all we saw:

Scars joked that maybe someone needed
to revisit the concession stand...

At around 11:15 or so, he and I returned to the lobby. Five other patrons sat baffled, waiting for word. I’m usually timid but I think Scars’ fearless nature inspires me. I walked behind a vacant service counter, looked into an empty office, and called out. Back in the auditorium, I even banged on a locked door.

Nothing. I later learned everything is automated, run by computer.

At long last two technicians appeared after Scars and/or I talked to a few different employees. Having climbed a ladder into the screening room, they apologetically claimed an inability to clear the glitch. Not even rebooting the mainframe. Issues included the system indicating no tickets had been sold. It all seemed stranger and stranger.

Around noon, the first fellow who approached us as opposed to the other way around returned and apologized because nothing had worked. Even calling their corporate office led nowhere. It seems corporate had been overwhelmed and stymied by this issue. Strangely, the nationwide problem apparently affected this particular movie alone.

I give all the staff credit for their efforts. And each individual patron received a refund offer, free food/drink tickets, and a complimentary movie pass.

All of us thwarted moviegoers remained calm, I’m proud to say. The others got their ticket cost refunded while Scars declined. He is financially well off and wanted the filmmakers to get their portion of the earnings.

Have you ever encountered something like this? Do you, like my husband, think it was a cyber attack on the theater chain?

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A Sudden Farewell

Monday, April 10 started out better than most of late. My husband had surgery the Tuesday prior and I’d been coughing for weeks. So I woke feeling pretty well and decided on a garden center visit.

Then I saw Jezebel stumbling around. It was as if her left rear leg wouldn’t support her weight. I immediately called our vet clinic.

A sleepy Jezebel back in February...

No doubt my post title tells the tale. With the clinic’s booked schedule, I dropped her off so they could fit her in and called hours later to learn her status. As it happened, the vet was about to phone me.

She said nobody believed her geriatric age (about 20) but the planned X-ray showed a tumor. Almost guaranteed aggressive cancer, she could prescribe an anti-inflammatory and tranquilizer.

Huh? Why?

I drove back with tears pouring down my face. Due to his post surgical condition my husband couldn’t attend. Thankfully, our kitty sisters keep me laughing. Yet the house seems too quiet.

Jezzy was almost certainly deaf and I took to calling her ‘Mighty Mouth’ (like Mighty Mouse come to save the day!) because she would meow shout for food/attention. Thank heaven we had so much time with her.

Can you believe several staffers, who see euthanasia daily, cried with me? How can I convince my husband’s lack of attendance shouldn’t make him feel guilty?

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A Happy Face & Dire Straits

I placed the last of our fresh fruit on a paper plate after finding a moldy mandarin orange among the rest. Without a thought I looked down and saw this:

Another day, I discovered a very sad vegetable left behind in the refrigerator. The little guy deserves a story but so far I haven’t moved forward on that.

Have you ever found a bit of desiccated produce in your kitchen? Did you know sweet potatoes can ferment if left to rot?

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Lucky Me - A Friday the Thirteenth Edition

I don’t consider myself a true superstitious person. And the luckiest, most joyful find in the last four years have been these beautiful brats er… angels er… doll babies.

These blacks cat can cross my path anytime. Just look at them!

Too bad they don't love one another, eh?

Are you familiar with tossing spilled salt over your left should to ward off the devil? Or that saying 'bless you' when someone sneezes is meant to do the same? Does your family lore have superstitions?

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Following a Theme... (WARNING: Fake but Graphic Gore Ahead)

During a recent meal out my drink came chilled by a very cool looking solid ice sphere. It made me wonder if someone made skull shaped ice trays.

And they do! My husband found several silicon models and purchased the one rated highest on Amazon, which only cost a few dollars. My fun experimenting with ever creepier additives has been priceless.

~grin~

If you don’t want to risk getting grossed out you should skip the photo at bottom. Hint: adding a dollop of tart cherry jam proved to be my best idea yet.

Have you ever seen a novelty ice cube? If you were to buy such an ice tray, what shape would you choose?

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Do you see a tiny second skull?

Here is a bonus fact for those horror fans who hung in there:

Adding cooked rice fragments grossed me out. Tinted green with a dot of wasabi, those ‘maggots’ looked way too real as the ice melted. And the feel of them... Ugh!

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Our New Comforter Set - Creepy Halloween Scare Warning. :)

 

Our bedroom decor  needed a change.
So I went creepy and my husband approves.
The cats are enjoying it, too.
Terra and Polly see the 3-D graphics as toys.
Good times for all.

Refilling the Soap Dispenser

 I discovered an easy fix online. Use the stem of the pump to keep a bubble from forming.

~shakes head

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