Sue how great to hear from you and your trip sounds fantastic! I’m glad to hear your travel club thing has worked out and with such nice hosts. Just don’t talk politics! Probably didn’t have to tell you that though. 😉
Drink in the love with your family ♥️♥️ – have a cupcake for me too! and make bunches of sweet memories 💓💖😍 xxx

Hi all. great fast yesterday..Really feel I can get back on the straight and narrow now in earnest. Feeling positive vibes about starting the downward weight loss again. Good thing too as I have a goal to reach in the next six weeks …..and that is to have lost more weight and get fitter so that I am able to play with my two grandchildren in the months of June and July. So planning on an alcohol free ❌❌❌ 🍷🍷night in between my two fast days to see if that makes a difference….however not sure I can watch the budget 💸💸💸💰💰being released without going for a scotch or two to make it palliatable…we will have to see. Possibly can take my own advice and have have a red wine spritzer or two and not a scotch…that might work.. Will have to see what my willpower ,,,or wontpower”,

Anyway had a successful day today, went to exercises in the hydro pool the. To Masters and got myself a six cube wooden frame with 6 matching basket cubes to put in the lounge room next to my recliner to store all of my knitting and craft stuff so that when I sit down it is all at the ready..now to get it together…
I then went to the garden section and got the final flower seedlings for the front yard to brighten up the garden…🌸🌼🌺🌻🌸💐🌺they were all at half price on a Tuesday….must remember that very good value…then went to the OP shop that sells good new matresses and found one that will suit a single bed 🛌🛌🛌💤💤😴😴that should work perfectly as my bed at DAughters place for just 140.00 with a 10 year warranty…can take it home and try it out and if it is not firm enough for me can get a full refund….can’t ask for more than that. My lucky day!!! Then……It was time to do something about my sewing machine….could not bring myself to give up on the old girl so I took it to the local Berina shop and put it in for a second opinion regarding repair….now it is a wait and see process again…here’s hoping….it gladdened my heart to see a number of the same red cases with machines in the , the same vintage as mine, awaiting repair…so there is still hope…

Fit..thanks for the kind words about OH and my skills. We are a good team and have renovated three houses so far, two of them were houses for removal that were recycled, after being cut in half, loaded onto trucks and moved to another area. We both love making something out of not much and transforming homes…it is so good to be able to help our Daughter with hers…really enjoying it. Our kids also helped out along the way and enjoy it as well.

Jade. So understand the keeping silent mode and keeping the peace….very hard to keep ones mouth shut sometimes and keep a happy face…🤐🤐🤐💞💞. Remember to pamper yourself sometimes…great work at the Chinese restraunt…you’re a legend,!, if you can do that I should be able to stick to erred wine spritzer so tonight..

Sorry all. Had to submit that last post before I had finished. my brother rang and then the neighbours called out and asked us in for a drink!! So almost dinner time now and no chance of getting back tonight. Talk to you all and read posts in the morning…and the next chapter Gyps. That will be after I go to the pool at 8am for Aqua classes….oh well..where does the time go.💜💜💜💜💜💜to you all

Hi all!
Very busy day here so only getting to post now. Doc in the morning (nothing serious). Took a friend to lunch…she had a stroke recently. Beautician this afternoon. Choir practice this evening….phew!
CG, I’m so glad your skin is getting a thorough going over and treatment. I hope it all heals up quickly….sounds like a lot of stitches. Find some old movies or box sets and snuggle up with your boys and do what you’re told! As you can see, I decided not to bite my tongue! 😉😃💚
SJ, I’m so thrilled to hear how much fun you’re having and all the lovely things you’re doing with your gorgeous grandies. Hug them close and make lots of precious memories 💞💕
Gyps, best of luck with the next chapter….can’t wait! 👍💪
PH, well done on the successful fd…..it feels good to get back in the groove, doesn’t it? Having done a real, old fashioned, honest to goodness fast yesterday, I’m all fired up again to stop faffing around and just fast properly! Best of luck getting your sewing machine fixed 🙏
Jade, get a big case on wheels, knock out OH with a concoction of your choice, pack him into the case and you’ll be in Ireland before he wakes up! Then we can work our magic on him once he’s here….easy, peasy! I hope your poor brain gets a break, I’m sure you’re not finished with it just yet!
I’ve a full day ahead again tomorrow, so not sure when I’ll get to post. Best of luck, fasting or not 👍😃💞💚

Mornin’ CG! Glad to hear you and your homestead survived the storm. Let’s hope the next one is not so severe. That will be a lovely visit with Glenn, hearing all about his trip to Singapore. It would be lovely to meet up with Leah and the children too, since you don’t get to see them quite so often. I think it’s wise to take a break from the more strenuous exercise for the moment. You are already active enough gardening, doing chores and looking after your menagerie! Best of luck with the sewing! 👍😄💚

chuckle…. wise, CG, BACK TO THE BEGINNING IS THE VERY THING! you will need to study each layer carefully to find the threads….bugga… now which one am I on! Oh, yes, the starving human’s …tsk tsk….well get off it, you old fool, and get back to the story!……

Hope all is well. Still at the jail and all is well – not locked up yet
Anne

Hey team, late start here – end of semester brings on 1001 tasks that were put off while the real work of teaching was getting done. Yikes it’s like swatting mosquitos, soon as you get one, another ten are biting you on the ankles. God forbid they let the door close on graduation day, they know we are all “out of town” (or pretend to be!) after that. Some serious retirement rumination underway….

Gyps, I loved your tales of the sewing machines! I have a fairly new (10 years = new to me, especially given our cars are all much older) Singer, have never quite figured it out, wish I could ship it to you talented types. I gave up the notion of actually making things decades ago, but thought it would be useful for mending and alterations. Nope! Not with me at the helm, anyway. 🤔

PH be still my heart! 💜 Putting together a treadmill would be great therapy for me. I even enjoy figuring out the instructions. From a writing teacher’s standpoint, they’re fascinating in their ability to be universally confusing while still conveying the nugget of necessary info. I’ve used them before in class to show how frustrating it can be for both teller and listener when they aren’t on the same wavelength.

Haven’t had a chance to get back to Tannouie and the rest of hell’s angels – I’ve been coveting the ability to sleep when head hits the pillow lately 😴 plus I’m trying to read up on books to be discussed at a literary presentation this week. Reading non-fiction is not my first choice after all the paper-grading, so I’m trying not to take that out on the author (reading without thinking). It really is a wonderful book, South of Haunted Dreams. Its pace is slow but purposefully so, as he explores the South on his motorcycle, coming to some peace with himself and history.

Gad CG I can just see you all outfitted and rubberized in the storm, out to take care of your charges 🐮🐮 It is what you do, though 💖 and I see that in everyone here, doing what needs to be done, not without care for ourselves but often with sacrifice to help others. Looking at you there too Annie, as you sit in jail (though not locked up – good to hear!). You all give me a huge case of the warm fuzzies 🔥☀️💓 Not sure what a warm fuzzy looks like, just what it feels like.😘

Ugh it’s off to the dentist with OH and me today, won’t we be a couple of grumpy Gusses later, slurping our applesauce and mashed potatoes. Hope it won’t be too bad, mine’s just a cleaning, his is always worse and of course he hates going but pain forces him eventually.

Fit, all systems go for Ireland!! Luckily we’ve been surrounded lately by friends who think it’s just awesome, so their excitement has helped.☘🌈💚 Finally I think I can stop holding my breath. 🌬😊 And now off to the dentist with me – hugs all xxxx

Morning all. Fit your well done on second fast was appreciated but I blew it cause D came over after school and assembled my cube cupboard for me and OH cooked her a special dinner consisting, chicken, prawns , rice and lots of yummy things..paella , not sure if that spelt right, anyway it was so delicious had seconds and of course can’t have that without some nice white wine…so will try for my second fast on Friday.

Good luck with end of semester Jade, busy times indeed and of course with the dentist…will be thinking of you with all the madness involved. 😱🤔🤓💞💞💞
Sending you hugs Annie for your continued kindness to those less fortunate..((((💕💕💕))))

Gyps. Have not got back to reading from start to finish but will soon..hearing your request for some critique.. Hope you can get out in the great outdoors for a while to balance your spirit!! Love to you 💕💕💕

Must go…bridge today. Love all💜💜💜💜

Fit, hope you’re piled into bed by now – you sure do a lot of running around! I’ve been known to catch a few scones in my teeth too – somehow they just fly at me from the coffee shop, weird isn’t it. Is that good news about your sis? Hugs for all you go through on that front. and I hope they can help her feel better so that YOU have fewer battles to face. How is the French going? I was never fluent and now pretty ignorant altogether. Not sure what I was thinking when I chose it as my college major, but it ended up being a decent prelaw path – if nothing else it forced me to keep learning stuff💪🤓

PH sounds like a lovely evening with OH and D, wouldn’t swap those for the world. I was planning a FD too and have no excuse for my swing-and-a-miss except I loved my own darn cooking tonight 😋 – and made way too much. Two lbs grilled salmon and all manner of roasted veggies. In my defense, I’m trying to clear out the freezer before we leave, so part of the salmon may go into our very willing furry friends 🐶🐶🐱🐱 Ah well, I am full of vitamins now!

The dentist got his money’s worth today, I have a cavity, could use some implants (the dental kind, please!) and OH needs all sorts of things. However, none of it urgent! I may not ever get OH back there 😆 but I’ll worry about getting him on the plane first 👍😍☘xxx

CG’s missing in action this morning…must be having too much fun with family….hope so!!💜💜💕💞

Hi all!
Jade, I think it should be good news for my sister because we need to find out if her latest complaints are physical or mental and then we’ll know how to proceed with her care. She is a very complicated case, full of contradictions so we’re never sure what’s real and what isn’t with her. It’s good timing too, because my other sister, who shares the caring with me, is going away for a week. I’m loving the French classes and I’m learning loads but forgetting almost as much as I learn! Ha, ha! Is there an emoji for a brain with holes? Understanding our neighbours in Normandy is always the biggest problem but it never gets in the way of us having a terrific time with them. Wine and food are a universal language…..n’est ce pas? My sympathies with you about the dentist, it doesn’t seem fair that we have to pay to be tortured! 😁
PH, I take my hat (!) off to you for learning bridge, my brain would be totally scrambled if I tried to do that…. I just don’t get it! I’m just starting my fd and yours is over so I hope it went well. For some reason, I’ve really switched on to proper, clean fasting….no messing around with spreading out the calories over the day etc, just one meal in the evening and lots of fluids. Simple! Well, that’s what I’m telling myself and, for now, it seems to be working! 👍😃
Aw, CG, how lovely that Glenn and Leah are showing how much they appreciate you and how precious you are to them. I hope your mower is working properly but make sure to let Julie do the heavy work and TAKE CARE! My OH absolutely loved your quote….he reckons that’s how he lives his life! 🤔😳

Ah, CG, I also loved your quote. You speak as I write! God save the plot! Dunno where it is at the Mo. think you are right PH, I need to come up for air! Fit. I do wonder myself how I fitted all the stuff in that I can now look back on. But some experiences in a gypsy life can change drastically with the terrain in a matter of weeks, to make a jam packed year! I never stayed longer than seven years anywhere, tho I have returned to places (and jobs)for further incarceration. I so envy you your solidarity as part of the history of your community (for teachers are the cornerstone of a people’s culture). I listen with awe to you and Jade calmly discussing aptitudes in learning that require degrees and Egad, French! for a second lingo! whilst I still struggle to understand what my fingers type! Talk about CG’s quote! I must warn you, I think it may have environmental influences on a daily basis. like OH’s fixation on bowel processes (since his bowel op last year). Bwah! ha! ha! – it has become the throne room of his discontent! and thenthere was the influence od the scriptwriting thingy I did over The summer, whereby a random lecture I attended on ‘how to’, had this animated speaker who was adamant that to ‘get the juices flowing’ one MUST WRITE SHIT. and just to keep going until the blockage POPPED then the gem of wisdom would flow onto the page! Ah, a diarrhoeal delight of such wonders now awaits ya’all. Happy prospecting! lemme know if there’s a gem to be found! I may have lost my altruistic beginnings…. not to mention that of all creation!

Meanwhile, the weather is improving daily and I dug up Gawd. She is into the fishing and reef sojourns, now her OH can’t get back on the camp drafting circuit (since hip replacement last year) he’s commandeering her time on the high seas to the exclusion of much else. But hoping to get the vans lined up sooon! Now have to wait til after the 24th for Oh’s six monthly MRI (on the liver front. Always something!

There you are CG! Glad to hear you had such a wonderful time with Glenn and Leah 💕 and another to look forward to soon. Anyone here surprised that CG did a bit too much heavy lifting with that post-op wrist? 💪 Good thing Glenn could rewrap you! It’s so nice to feel the love, you give so much – and the Chinese goodies and 🎁 don’t hurt either 💖
Gyps, I tell students the same thing – write shit, just get started. No one writes a good first draft of anything legal. They took that to heart, too – lots of shit writing! Like a brief that started with “Defedant’s arugment” 😡
Looking forward to reading about hell again now that I finished the other book – I am loving YOUR writing!! Hugs to you and the leprechaun. xx

PH I’m with Fit on the bridge – I was in a social bridge group once, and come to think of it was in a card-playing marriage once too – I just never wanted to work that hard and call it fun. I suppose it was a mutually satisfying departure on both fronts 😂 but they can’t say I didn’t try! (Don’t mean to make light of divorce, but it was many years ago and I’m happy to have moved on.) What’s your secret? Lots of wine?? 🍷🍷😆

Fit, that’s great about sis, I suspected as much. And glad you are getting a respite while your other sis is gone. So wonderful you have found such great friends in France, despite the language difference. And oui bien sur, wine and food = good times🍷🧀! Congrats on the new-found fasting success, too. I’m currently digging for self-control, I know it’s buried around here somewhere! But I’m at least behaving 3/4 of the day 🙊 which is having some good effect. Yesterday’s tally probably 700ish so not a FD but I was not hungry at all after the 🐟🍆🐟🍆. Perhaps my gigantic fang of a sweet tooth is turning back into a regular molar 😁 One can hope!
Another day of see sawing on the mood playground here! I seriously had to zip my lip and put it in a body bag last night. LOL WHY IS BEING NICE SO HARD SOMETIMES. Guess we have all been there! Today so far it’s all systems go again. Yay? I’m exhausted. Hugs all – love sharing the news and some laughs, keeps me going. 💚😍💙💜💛❤️xx

Welcome Kirstyjk! I think your story is quite familiar here, it certainly is to me! Yes, I agree that getting back into the good, old, tried and tested routine is the way go. You’ve done it before and you can do it again! Best of luck! Keep checking in here and we’ll support you every step of the way. 👍😃

Fit I think you’re onto something! – how many calories were burned at midnight by willing my brain not to release all the unpleasant critters running around up there 🐁🐀🐉 THOUSANDS I’m thinking 😂 Ha. I know you do the same thing with your sis. We should weigh negative pounds.

Ah it must truly be spring if it’s pedi time 💅! I haven’t had one yet, but got one before last year’s trip then wore sandals one freezing day out of sheer spite. Ended up leaving those for charity, with some op shop things I had bought just for the teaching part of the trip. This year I’m planning to pack some things from the worn-out-give-away pile, one last hurrah so to speak – so FYI I’ll be the bag lady back in the corner sipping Guinness, you can’t miss me 😍 😎🍺xx

Hi ADers how are we all. A quick post while in the car. Gyps great to connect on FB and UP too. Have moved onto our second host family and they’re great. Much more relaxed hosts and we have a lot in common. She’s an artist and he has got into book writing…self publishing. Have a lovely house with bright decor from Mexico and Africa & other places they’ve travelled. They live in a gated community of 9000 people! All over 55’s. Immaculate place.
Grandparent duties today as DIL goes to some appts. Went to our first ever baseball game yesterday – good fun. And took the whole family to an italian restaurant for a family night. We managed to get through the whole dinner without having to leave so DIL was happy!!!
Better leave it at that for now. Will attempt again to do a photo via the tablet this time. Suejen xxxx
cg look after those stitches girl!!

Fit please do save some sunshine for meeeee! 🔆🔆🔆 OH has already foretold the rains that will greet us in Shannon and all the fun we’ll have driving on the left side again! Wheee! 🏎😳
Woo hoo SJ your trip sounds so grand – thrilled that the travel club brought you to such nice hosts. And all the cuddles with the family 💕💕💕 Italian food, baseball (I love going to the ball park), what could be better! Enjoy every second 😍xxx

Mornin’ CG! We’re expecting a very fine weekend with lots of sunshine. We’ve had the coldest April in nearly 30 years…brr! So I’m looking forward to wearing some lighter clothes and showing off my toes! I hope you’re minding yourself but that’s probably a silly statement 😛

Fit, Re your ‘coldest April’. Our stats say we have just come through the hottest April on record. Oh my, being connected across the world is really bringing the big picture into focus, ain’t it? Poor little fairies are having an uphill battle! Life and all our rubbish is getting in the way of life as we want it to be. But maybe just want the fairies to fix the fallout, without any curtailment of our frolic? (at least in too many cases for the ecology to sustain)but it won’t stop until we feel the Earth love that she needs returned. I wonder if that’s what drew my pen to this tale? When it came up as a tag for a competition #EarthLove. and #JustwriteIt.(finally, warts and all!) And on an invention of another world, which would be hard to imagine, in terms of being better than the one we’ve got. I’m not finding one, even with my epic habit of going round the bend in pursuit of my funny bone. Which has ever been the light in my tunnel. “If ya’ don’t laugh, ya’ cry, mate, take the fun road!”. Frivolity is my holy grail(much to the annoyance of the doomsday brigade) There’s definitely too much shit in the world! A challenge from my cheeky niece, is the less than altruistic motivator. And the cupboard (which I now note you are ALL cleaning) creaked open on my whole life mess! So I don’t claim any enlightenment, but WTF! Influences are definitely at work. My step daughter who also dabbles in oil paints,recently posted one of her latest pieces (which I just found and done before I published, but while I was writing) on Facebook. I hadn’t been online or in touch with the kids much lately and they all take it for granted that I’m on a writing binge – (away with the fairies…. as the brat of my crew puts it) It’s amateur standard, but all about ‘Mummy’s little goblin hut in the magic swamp,’ and there are fairies and even an angel sitting in the tree (and definitely nothing like anything she’s ever done before) Who knew I would find so much to blurb about Celestial affairs?!!! Alzeimers looms! Ta for your lovely comments, both you and Jade are definite inspirations to my funny bone.

Oh and then along came Suegen popping up on my facebook with this masterpiece of her hubby’s. – It is the Rainbow Rowan’s forest of my mind’s eye….. interesting.

How can the little people lose with the mighty forest rowing their light rays? Be optimistic. We CAN still save the world ! I feel it in me water! Have a nice day, all xxx gyps

But…JADE, there is on practical possibility to help your situation re OH’s depression; Check the side effect listed in the fineprint of any meds he may be taking. The statin drugs for cholesterol management and most anti histimines, as well as anti-depressants themselves, can have reversal effects. and certainly suppressing cholesterol interferes with brain function. Sometimes the ‘cure’ is worse than the complaint. and not going into ratbag suggestions that ‘all meds are bad and lets just go back to the dark ages’, but some rethinking is going on in the background that won’t reach the guidelines anytime soon if BIG PHARMA can help it. Statins is a baddy for causing early alziemers and depression.

The other clue is limit the news fixation if possible (I’m considering sabotaging the telly here for the leprechaun’s therapeutic benefit! but he has It on his laptop, so I am not ready to sacrifice my connection to this lifeline!)- anyway, I do think a lot of the world’s troubles are just manufactured hype. But the ecology situation is getting serious when we are freezing and frying in our opposite poles. Sound familiar? (well that’s what the fairies reckon, apparently…hell needs a little kickback! )

. Like GG says of our reef around Cairns. The waters are heating up. And the junk dumping is compounding the issue. Gawd is reporting the same thing on the scarcity of fish and the wrecking of their habitats. We must take an optimistic view, tho, Depression is definitely on the rise, and if one subscribes to the ‘law of attraction’ theory, it is all the fearmonging compounding itself. And the news monster is thriving on it. I long ago turned off the news, personally. Shane made me very aware of the machinations of commercial news mongers digging up as much dirt as they possibly can to fill pages and pre- gazetted air slots. It was one of the reason he got out of commercial TV and took on his own agency. Only taking the ‘spotters’ assignments, like disaster/storm chasing that were what he called ‘positives he could do to inform the people of what was happening to their world (and their relative/friends in rescue situations. He had a few major run-ins with them editing stuff out that ‘took the edge off the calamity aspect’. “it’s all hype to get ratings. “The !@#$!! greedy assholes don’t want positives!”. I can hear him saying that as plain as day. He finally walked out on the Nine network when they wanted him to cover a controversial funeral (in the bikie wars) and get shots of the grieving relatives, along with hopeful emotional outbursts re vengeance. “The bastards are trying to keep the war going through my imagery. It’s good for business!” . I think I was too busy with my own evangelistic project to save trees and cancer victims from the system to realize how concerned he was for the future of his kids. And tho he fought it, anxiety took it’s toll. If you can find your Hubby’s funny bone, dig it up by fair means or foul. but in the end it is not your job to cheer him up at the expense of your own laughter. Believe me, I can hear it struggling. A little plain speech is sometimes required. loved ones in pain, can be selfish without realizing it, and drain us to extinction. But if you fall down, he’ll be lost. SET SOME LIMITS ON YOUR TOLERANCE LEVELS. ONE HAS TO BE CRUEL TO BE KIND SOMETIMES. LUCK. XX GYPS