Let The Shit Show Begin

In terms of school, that is. I got a voice mail yesterday from my principal telling me that because of requirements set by the health department and the close proximity of my room to the nurses clinic at school, they would be taking it over for the coming year. It will be a separate room to put any possible covid cases that come up through the school day. I can't say that I was surprised by this; I actually thought this might happen. Thankfully as well, they are moving me to the room across the hall and based on what I could glean from my principal's email, it should only be for this year (we'll see). For a minute, apparently, he thought about making me travel. Lucky for my principal he decided against that idea. I would have fought that bullshit tooth and nail. I mean, I've got 20 years under my belt and to make me travel!? Fuck no! But like I said, I didn't need to fight that fight so no need to get stressed about it now. 

Additionally, I had a parent contact me yesterday about her son. He's an anxiety ridden kid who was going to try out the career center for this year (part-time; 1/2 days for his lab at the career center with academics at the high school). Well, with all the shit happening due to covid, she's asking that he just go to the high school. Good thing because The WCCC sent a letter telling the students and parents attending that they were doing their own hybrid type of schedule and who knows how that would have gone with the already hybrid schedules for 1/2-timers. 

The principal is also asking the staff to put together a syllabus and video for classes. Nobody got time for that shit...during summer! I won't worry about that until I get back from PIB next week. Actually, I won't worry about it then either but I'll figure something out. 

Not much else to talk about. I leave for PIB tomorrow. I'll try to be on the road around 8:00 after walking Scout and having breakfast. Not in a rush but I'm hoping to avoid any rain/storms that may pop up in the tri-state area. Weather should be fine once I get north of the city. 

K - well, time to get going. Jim's got a dermatology appointment today (just a 6 month check). His scan results won't be back until next week. No other real plans today...grocery and packing. Happy Friday! Stay healthy! I'll be back here next Thursday! Later!

For Once, Jim's More On Top Of It Than Me!

I totally forgot that Jim had a scan this morning and was wondering why he got up at 5:00 AM. I just figured he wasn't feeling well or couldn't sleep. When my alarm went off at 6:00 AM, however, it hit me! And I thought, "Wow! Muir forgot something for once rather than Jim!" A first? Good job Jim! 

The bummer about his scan is that I was going to take an early morning bike ride down on the trail but with him out the door at 6:15, I was left walking the boys on my own. So...no early morning ride. Probably no ride, in fact because rain is moving in. Oh well...I'll just get on the elliptical in a bit. 

I may have to take Jimmy out for either lunch or dinner today for a couple reasons. A) He didn't get his breakfast due to his scan and he had to drink a nasty contrast prior; B) with me going out of town on Saturday, Jim deserves a treat, especially since he's made no complaints about not getting to go to PIB and C) He starts back to work on Monday and again, deserves a treat. We'll see what he thinks. 

So yeah, I took the boys - separately - on a walk (usually Jim takes Boo). The thing about Boo is, he's got a lot of fear which is why he has such extreme reactions to other dogs. Sometimes this can be a pain in the ass when walking him because he acts like a nut - barking, snarling, pulling like a maniac on his leash. So today when I took him out, I took the squirt bottle with me to try and keep him in line. He did GREAT! First of all, he didn't pull at all and it only took me saying, "Uh uh!" when he started. In fact, I never had to use the squirt bottle until we were almost home. About 5 houses up from ours, there's another nut dog on an invisible fence. Today, she happened to be out as we were coming home and per usual, she started running back and forth in the front yard freaking Boo out. Boo immediately started snarling and going crazy so I just grabbed the squirt bottle, squirt him once and said, "UH UH!" and that's all it took. He stopped barking, mostly stopped pulling and was fine. Good boy Boo! 

And that's all I've got. My plans for the day don't include much. It's going to be rainy here so maybe lunch is the way to go with Jim. If I know him, he'll want to go to Shooter's...works for me but we'll see. Dinner (if Jim chooses lunch out) will be fried rice and a salad (I have a bunch of rice leftover from previous meals that I need to use). 

K - I think I'll make a cold brew coffee and go sit on the front deck and read before the rain starts. Happy Thursday (man is this week going slowly!). Stay healthy. Later!

Two Thing On The To-Do List

Other than my normal workout, walk, and dinner making I have two things to do today: Mow the back yard and go to the grocery. I've been slacking in Jim's breakfast choices so I need to make his special waffles and get some Canadian bacon for the sandwiches I make him. (He rotates between cereal, sandwich and waffles and today he only had the choice of cereal. Oops!) In regard to the backyard, there are only certain areas that need mowing so I'll get that done today so the boys underbelly isn't being tickled by the crabgrass. Speaking of which: F&%KING crabgrass...shit is hard to get rid of! However, it's growing mainly where the container pool will go so I'm not too worried about it. HAHA!!!

My neighbors (Doug and Lauren) who had a Florida vacation planned for this coming week, cancelled. They were going down to vacay with Doug's family (two houses for 17 people) but because Doug's family hasn't been too terribly careful with social distancing they just weren't comfortable. I can't say I blame them. Especially with two kids who are immuno-compromised and who knows if they'll be required to quarantine upon coming back considering Florida is such a hot spot. So now they're trying to figure out what to do on their staycation. It was going to be the first time the whole family (meaning Doug, Lauren and their 5 kids) had actually gone on a vacation together. Sad.

Not much else going on here. Jim's almost done with the house painting...that's good. He goes through about 5 shirts a day doing this. Lots of laundry happening here in the Hanke household. Oh, Jim has a scan tomorrow. Fingers crossed please. His doc appointment won't be until next week so I'll let you know when I hear the results.

And that's about all I've got. Time to get Scoutie walked. Later! Stay healthy.

Switching It Up

Normally when I get up (lately) I drink coffee then do yoga, then make breakfast, walk Scout and do whatever other workout I'm in the mood for (today it will be a bike ride). Today, however, I'm making a bit of a change. I've had my coffee and breakfast and will get ready in a minute to walk Scout. Part of the reason for this change is that I want to get Scout out there a bit earlier considering the heat we've had lately. Of course today is much cooler and less humid than it's been but it's still hot when you're walking in a fur coat. 

New dream - not while sleeping...an actual dream I'm hoping to someday fulfill. Wouldn't this container pool look so good right off my deck in back!? I mean, I don't need anything large, just something to soak in while I'm laying out. Someday. 

Today's plans: I need to clean the house. I need to make a batch of my carrot cake waffles to freeze for Jimmy. I'll maybe do a little more school work. I did some yesterday (got schedules done) but some things just aren't completed yet for kids (some schedules aren't complete) so it's kind of pointless. However, I can do some of my organization stuff to prepare for school. I may lay out...who knows. It's going to be a beautiful day though so whatever I decide to do I won't be swimming in the heat. 

Dinner tonight: WW BBQ pork chops with cauliflower rice and probably broccoli or cauliflower. An easy grill meal. j

And that's all I've got. Time to get a move on. Happy Tuesday...later! 

Another Summer Day

In a month, it won't be "summer" for me anymore and I'll hopefully be back in my school building. It's truly hard to imagine and at times, with everything going on, numbers going up and people being stupid, I still don't know if it's actually going to happen. I dread that possibility and just hope that we can get there. In the meantime, however, I'll enjoy these final days of summer even if the humidity is drowning me.

The weekend was good...uneventful really. Just the usual...a little hang time with neighbors, a little virtual card playing, a little laying out, a trip to LMBC. Nothing special but nice, nonetheless.

This week, I'll be getting ready to head up to the bay for the last time this year. I'm going to leave Saturday and head back home the following Wednesday. I don't need to do much to get ready...just laundry and figure out with Trip about meals.

Jim's headed back to work next week. I know he's nervous about it but with the mask mandate, I think he'll be okay. Plus, he'll most likely be on 2nd shift, working on his own...that makes things a bit better.

I'm going to try and get some school work started this week...try and get a little ahead of the game. It's probably the latest I've ever waited to get my shit together but I just can't stress about what's going to happen.

And that's all I've got. Scout and I need to take our swim walk...his tongue will certainly be hitting the pavement by the time we finish. Poor guy...he loves it though.

K - happy Monday...stay healthy...later!

Jim's A Dirty Bird

So one of our news reporters was reporting a story and he had a wrist brace on his right arm. I said, "Andrew?! What happened to your arm?!" And I look over at Jim and he's making a dirty motion with his right hand to indicate...well...you know...self-satisfaction...the five-knuckle shuffle...choking the chicken...whippin the skippy. I said, "JEEZ JIM!!!" And he said, "What!? That's the joke anytime a guy has a brace on his wrist." Really? Is that true? Because I never knew that. Jim's dirty.

What is happening here? Well, it's Friday and I can't WAIT to have a cocktail today! More than that, I can't wait to have a mimosa tomorrow! I wasn't GREAT with not drinking this week but I was good. I didn't drink ANYTHING alcoholic on Monday or Thursday and on Wednesday I only had 1 drink which was lo cal, no sugar, no carbs (and delicious) so really...I'm not counting that. (And btw - it's my new fave drink...takes like a fizzy seltzer but better! Try it if you can find it. I've only had the Black Cherry/lime and blueberry/pomegranate and they both rock. There's also strawberry/kiwi and pineapple/mango. Oh, and it's good for you...I mean it has antioxidants in it!)

Other plans for the day (besides drinking later) include walking Scout, taking a bike ride (around the neighborhood), maybe laying out and making a run to the grocery (I ran out of my fave tea and miss it!) Dinner tonight is tuna salad, corn on the cob and marinated cucumbers. Easy and mostly make ahead so little hassle.

I had a dream about school last night so that's started. Additionally, Warren county is still in the orange in terms of Ohio Covid spread which means as of now, we'll be in school come mid-August. Hopefully with the governor's new mask mandate for the state, it will keep us below red. Fingers crossed!

And that's all I've got. Time to get Scout taken care of. Happy Friday! Stay healthy. Ooh, Reds baseball tonight! K - later!

Rainy Day Plans

I mean, with a rainy day, can you have too many plans? Mine are the same as every other day, for the most part: Walk Scout, do some other workout and then read. I don't have anywhere to go today so that's good. I'll do my weekly facial (using my Aztec clay mask) and maybe I'll take a nice soothing bubble bath!

So I got an email from Aunt Kathleen yesterday about the collagen that I've mentioned before. I thought, hmm...maybe others are wondering what the eff I'm talking about. Here are the detes: I've been taking a collagen protein powder for about 2 months now. I started with one brand and switched recently to another (seen left). I like the 2nd product better for many reasons. One great thing about this product is they sell it at Costco for about $12 cheaper than on Amazon. Plus it contains hyaluronic acid, which is great for your skin. I take it once in the morning - a scoopful - added to my scoopful of Metamucil. Here are some of the benefits I've noticed:

• My skin is clearer
• My skin seems less wrinkly
• My skin - especially around my eyes - seems less puffy
• My nails grow like crazy and they are really strong
• My toenails that used to crack stopped cracking
• Good or bad - my hair seems to be growing a lot faster
• My joints seems less painful (you know that feeling when you first get out of bed or get up from sitting a long time and you have to walk like you've got a stick up your ass because things just hurt? That has reduced greatly). 
• I feel like I'm a LOT more flexible but I'm not sure if that is just being in shape or what.

They also say that it helps you sleep better (but not to say that it puts you to sleep), however, I haven't noticed a difference there. With all the amino acids in it, it is also said that it helps with muscle development and deterioration, especially for people who are battling illness. Meaning, greater development for those who strength train while keeping muscles from quickly deteriorating when they are stagnant. I love that it's completely tasteless and easy to take.

So there you go, my review...take it or leave it. Can't hurt though.

And that's all I've got to talk about. It's raining but not hard and not with lightning so I'll take Scout out. Hopefully it will be a better walk than yesterday. There's a major road closed right outside my neighborhood for water main replacement and our neighborhood has been a cut through for the past couple days. Yesterday was like Grand Central and it SUCKED! Fingers crossed.

K- happy Thursday! Stay...say it with me...HEALTHY! Later!

Scout Doesn't Like The Rain

Scout's walk is getting postponed because of rain and he isn't happy about it. I would walk him in the rain but there might be some lightning in there as well so I'm holding off.

Me? I'm psyched that it's raining...we need it badly! Of course I wasn't very happy when I was awoken at 1:30 last night to lightning and realized I hadn't brought in any of the cushions. I popped out of bed and raced from the front to the back (getting beamed in the head by moths which pissed me off) trying to beat the rain. I did. But then when I went back to bed, you know I couldn't get back to sleep. So I read instead.

Speaking of which, I'm reading a really good book by Sally Hepworth called The Mother-in-Law. Apparently it was on O Magazine’s "15 Best Beach Books of the Year So Far". Well-written and suspenseful. Get it if you can.

Plans for the day: Well, yesterday I did a little switching around of outdoor furniture. (Maybe I mentioned this?) I took the couch we had on the front deck and switched it with a couple of the wicker pieces that were in the Florida room. (I just didn't like how low the couch sat.) Doing this, I had to remove the cushions I had been using on the Adirondack rockers because they were meant for the chairs I put out there. So now, I need to go get cushions to replace them. I'm going to go to At Home (where the old Sam's was on Fields Ertel) at some point today for those and hopefully something for the front door as well. We also need a new umbrella (ours has faded a LOT) but we'll see about that. I also need to start doing some school prep work but I'm just not feeling it. However, because of the weather, it would be a good day to start.

Tonight's dinner (Jim's choice) is Chinese Chili Garlic Shrimp with rice and broccoli...never made this before but it looks and sounds good so we'll see.

And that's all I've got. Looks like it's just raining so maybe I'll just get this walk over with before I do my elliptical. Scout will be so happy. K - happy Wednesday - stay healthy...later!

Don't You Hate It...

Don't you hate it when you go to pay a bill online and you can't remember your username/password? My computer has an automatic remember me thing with most my bills but for some reason, my water bill doesn't ever remember. A while ago, I set up a folder with all my info for accounts in it but of course my water bill info wasn't being accepted today. And of course when I clicked "Forgot my password" and had an email sent to reset it, I never got an email. So then I kept trying but got locked out. Currently I'm on the phone to get this figured out.

UPDATE: All is well, and I've paid my water bill! Thank God...wouldn't want to be without water in this heat because you know after I walk Scout and do the elliptical, I'm going to be STINKY!

Yesterday I did venture out to Costco and Aldi. So happy to have A) found the collagen protein I use $12 cheaper and B) bought a supply (two boxes) of the Kirkland Pinot Grigio that I discovered for only $12! I also got Jim some sangria as well as some proseco and I found a huge bag of individual packages of Mexican Street corn! Woot! Other than that, I got the usual: TP, pork chops, eggs. Aldi I got some cod, shrimp, my creamer, some beans and cheese.

After I did all that yesterday, I was feeling rather blah and decided to go on a bike ride to lift my spirits. It worked! Sometimes you just need a bit of fresh air (even if it is oppressive, humid air) to clear you brain.

I was quite proud of myself yesterday: I'm trying not to drink this week (Monday - Thursday) and I was sitting on the front deck reading around 5:00 when I got a text from my neighbor Cari asking if I was drinking this week. I told her no and so she said, "Okay - I was only going to have one today if you did." THEN, Lauren came over and had a beer but I remained steadfast and stuck to my cold brew coffee. Only three more days to go.

Today: Not many plans, however, I'll do my usual (walk, yoga, elliptical) and then I need to go to Meijer to get a few things I forgot at the grocery the other day and get some spray for the dumb Japanese beetles that have been eating my flowers. Little bastards! I hate them! Every time I see them I want to squash them between my fingers and kill them dead. But that's gross...and mean so I just flick them as hard as I can!

Yesterday I was on the phone with Maggie and I was on the front deck putting the cushions out and I lifted one of the cushions and underneath it was a chipmunk snoozing. He got startled, I screamed my head off (rendering Maggie deaf in one ear), he went running and I'm pretty sure we both had a mild heart attack. Dumb chipmunk! Next time I'll bring Scout with me and he'll really give you something to be scared about.

Speaking of Scoutie, I better get moving and walk him before he scratches my eyes out. Happy Tuesday! Stay healthy! Later!

Back From PIB

Jim and I got back from PIB on Saturday, just in time to "enjoy" the hottest temps this year. Needless to say, we needed to cool down and so spent the day at Raeburn in the pool. It was lovely. Our neighbors, Lauren and her 5 kids, came for a couple hours as well.

Our time in PIB was lovely as usual. Unfortunately the Crew's Nest closed down after our first day there but we were able to stay cool and enjoy ourselves out on the lake with the paddle boards. I'll head back up in a couple weeks when Trip and JJ are there  (Jim won't be going however) just before school starts back up.

Speaking of school - there is a plan in place. Option 1 - we return with kids in the classroom on a normal schedule. Students and teachers will be required to wear masks as we won't be able to social distance. This will continue until or if the county hits the level 3, red alert. If/when that happens, students will move into Option 2 and virtual learning. In the high school the kids will take their classes using a program called Apex. Here's my question/concern with that: My kids in my classes are WAY below grade level which is why they are in pullout classes. How are my kids going to be able to take their Government class using this online system because it certainly won't be on their level of understanding (I'm also teaching physical science and English). I've posed the question to my union president but I have a feeling what the answer will be: I'll have to figure something out. I'm not going to panic yet, however...no need getting all freaked out until I need to. There are a LOT of other questions I have but I'm sure they'll be discussed when we return.

We're still in a major heat wave and will be through the week. I need to cut the back yard but need to get Scout walked first. Other than that, I need to get to Costco and Aldi...not sure if I'll do that today or tomorrow. We'll see.

And that's all I've got. Happy Monday! Stay healthy and masked. Later!

Busy Prep Day

First - Scout just burped in my face. Jeez...is that any way to thank me for walking you every day!?

So yeah, today will be busy, busy, busy as we get ready to leave for PIB tomorrow. I need to go to the store (which I'll do after I post), do some dinner prep for our meals up there, do laundry, clean the house (with Jimmy's help), pack, and take a bike ride at some point (I already walked Scoutie). I'm hoping to get most of this done before noon so I can chill for the majority of the day. It's a gorgeous, cool, non-sticky day so far!

Weekend news: We had a pretty chill weekend. I went trail running with Doug on Saturday at Long Branch Farm. I fell and busted up my knee a bit but didn't actually know I had done it until I saw that my knee was bleeding and soaking into my sock. No big deal and didn't really hurt. My first running injury! We went three miles (that's good for me) and I felt quite accomplished afterward.

Yesterday we all headed down for lunch at Allyn's cafe and then to Streetside Brewery. Allyn's was DEEEELICIOUS (lots of vegan fare) and Streetside was only okay. I had a Imperial Stout that was REALLY strong (10% ABV) then I tried a Shandy that tasted like fake lemon juice with a bit of fizz...it was pretty disgusting. From there we came home and just hung out.

Dinner tonight will be individual pizzas and a salad...something easy that won't leave leftovers. Bed will have to be early so that we can get up at the crack of dawn and hopefully get on the road by 6:00. I'll have to crack the whip under Jim's ass to make that happen.

K - well I have lots to do...later! Stay healthy through the week...I'll be back Saturday so won't post until next week but I'll be on FB. Later!

"Threats"

Jim was just telling me a story about when he was in Spain (siestas and how people complained in regard to banks closing during that time) and I said, "So? If everyone is having a siesta, who's complaining?" And he said, (in jest) "If that's the way you're going to be, I just won't tell you my stories anymore!" And BAM! Just like that my day turned to the GOOD!

Rain's a comin'! So happy! Not a ton (and hopefully it doesn't dissipate) but enough to turn the humidity down and water the lawn.

Plans for the day: I'm going to put together the menu for PIB today so I can shop and prepare stuff. Other than that - nothing major. We may go to lunch at Shooters...we'll see. Clermont County is now in the red zone so that puts me on edge a bit. Maybe we'll just hang at home and have a cocktail. Jim's working on the side yard which will probably take forever anyway so...

Weekend plans: Nothing really. We have a neighbor up the street who is going out of town and she asked Jim to check on her pool (empty the skimmer baskets) while she's gone. She also offered that we can swim if we want. May have to take her up on that tomorrow...we'll see.

My school is supposed to release their plan for returning today. Should be interesting...I just really hope that we can go to school full time safely but I don't have a lot of hope for that. Ugh!

And that's all I've got. Scout's giving me the harry eyeball so I'd better get my socks on and head out. Happy Friday! Stay healthy and masked! Later!

Toes!!!

I almost forgot that I have an 11:00 pedicure appointment! So excited! I was sitting here thinking that I have nothing to talk about except for the humidity and then I remembered! Woot! Toes get prettified today! (Wow, prettified is a word...I thought I'd made that up.)

In other news, the humidity is still going strong here. It is SO STICKY! I look like I jumped in a pool by the end of my walk with Scout. Gross!

Speaking of Scout (and Boo), they both got a bath yesterday. Originally it was just Scout getting one because he was itchy but then later in the day, Boo located the most disgusting thing to roll in (I think he was jealous) and voila! Clean dogs!

Thanks a lot Applebees! I just saw their commercial for who-knows-what but the song was the Welcome Back Kotter theme and now I'll be singing that for the rest of the day.

Frostys is now closed until further notice. Apparently they have been named as a point of contact for Covid and will have to test all employees which won't happen until Friday. It then takes 24-48 hours to get results back (according to their press release) so who knows when they'll be back open. Fine with me, however, since I wasn't going to go there anyway. I think it's ironic since they were so quick to announce they were flouting mask wearing by employees. I'm guessing they're rethinking that dumb move. I will be staying as far from downtown as possible next week.

And that's all I've got. Scout just stole my socks so I think he's trying to tell me something. Happy Thursday...might have to have a cocktail tonight...we'll see. Stay healthy...later!

Kicking Jack Nicholson / Jim

I was having this dream last night where I was fighting with Jack Nicholson and I was trying to kick him in the nuts and suddenly I was startled awake by Jim yelling out, "OUCH!" Apparently I was kicking Jim. Although I kicked him in the legs rather than further up. Made me laugh...still making me laugh. BTW - not sure what Jack did to get a kick in the balls but I do know he was being an asshole!

No real plans for the day. I will clean the house and then monitor Jim's jobs. If I don't, he tends to get distracted and not take care of the things he's supposed to take of. For instance, yesterday, he was supposed to get the side yard straightened and start working on the trench for the downspout. Instead, he spent about 4 hours spraying the circle (the common area in our cul-de-sac). He had a doctors appointment and had to get ready for that around 1:30 so his time to work but cut short. Annoying. Meanwhile I still have deck boards that need replacing (been on the list since March) and several other things.

Jim's doc appointment: It was really just a blood draw and a sit down with his doc. He's happy with what he's seeing in Jim's treatment so that's good. His next scan will be in 4 weeks. Jim told me that once again, he asked his doc the question of how long he would have to be on meds...at what point would his lungs look clear enough to stop them. (Can you hear my eye roll?) I mean, how many times have I told him he'll ALWAYS be on meds (unless there's a cure) because there really is no "remission" for melanoma!? He said the doc told him the same thing. I guess the moral of this story is that Jim is still living in a dream world and forgetting reality, of which he's constantly having to be reminded of. Not sure if that's good or bad. Hmm...

Okay well, I'm sure Scout is losing his mind right now to go for his walk. Better get a move on...even though it really won't matter in terms of steaminess...it's miserable out there now and was an hour ago and will be in another hour. Cincinnati in July...gotta love it.

K - happy Wednesday...stay healthy...later!

Much Needed Rain

Yesterday was, to say the least, hot and oppressive. However, around 5:30, we got a nice, drenching rain. Even a couple rumbles of thunder. In fact, it rained so hard that we still have puddles in the yard. This puts a damper on my plans to mow the lawn today but I'm hoping to do it anyway, especially the back because it needs it. We'll see.

In other news, I've been watching Hamilton and boy oh boy do I now understand what all the hype has been about! It's really long so I've been watching for about 40 minutes each night in bed (I have to watch it on the iPad because my stupid not-so-smart Smart TVs are too old for the Disney+ app). I'm now up to intermission and look forward to seeing the rest. What a talented bunch that cast is.

Speaking of people in history, did I mention I've been reading Jon Meacham's book American Lion (a biography on Andrew Jackson)? It's fascinating and really good...highly recommended. Jon Meacham is a great writer...I'll have to read more of his books. If it weren't for the current "president" we have, I would say, "Who would believe that a man with the kind of past that Andrew Jackson had could become president". We all now know that values, morals and integrity no longer matter (to some) on who "leads" this country. Although lets be real, who believes that DT is actually any kind of leader? Just looking at the things he's said about the confederate flag and Bubba Wallace is just so disgusting. What a fucking blatant racist! Sorry, not sorry to those I may have offended. I guess it's not a crime to have the wrong opinion. (Just ignorant!)

Scout is happy! Why? I finally found the collapsible dog bowl so he can have fresh water on our walks (rather than water from puddles). Speaking of which, I guess I'd better get a move on before the weather gets too disgusting to step outside. It's going to be worse today than it was yesterday...ugh!

K - happy Wednesday...right? Oh, nope, it's Tuesday. Jeez! I'm all mixed up. Anyway - stay healthy. Later!

Morning Ride

Sorry I'm late today...I went down early to the trail for a morning ride. It was lovely. I just went my usual route (from Miamiville to not-quite Newtwon), about 13 miles. When I stopped at my halfway point, I saw in the distance there was a storm brewing and heard some rumbles of thunder but it's going to miss us here.

So I haven't posted since Wednesday because I went to Columbus and then the weekend hit. It was a good weekend...full of fun, fireworks and alcohol. I'm ready to be back on the wagon this week.

Our disposal crapped out on us on Friday. We went yesterday and got a new one and then installed it. Took about 2 hours to do it with about an hour and 50 minutes spent getting the old one out. That's the biggest problem we face when we replace things in this house: Figuring out removal. Yesterday's problem was that the old disposal had corroded and rusted (it was about 15 years old) was fused together at the spot where we needed it to unscrew. I ended up just taking a chisel and hammer and pounding on it for about 30 minutes until if finally came off. Our new disposal is quiet and lovely so all the hassle was well worth it.

Went to Raeburn on Saturday for some fun in the sun. J.J. and I kicked Trip, Jim and Susan's asses in volleyball twice. I mean, we are a fierce duo!

Today's plans: I'm going to take Scout out for a walk here after I post this. I already gave him one mile out to keep him satisfied while I was on my ride but he needs more. Then I'll water my flowers...depending on how miserable it is today, I may lay out a bit (going to be near 100 though and the humidity is stupid). Other than that, I've got nothing. Oh, I'll probably put together plans for the upstairs bathroom redo. I know what I want, I just have to find the exact tile etc.

Dinner tonight is what we were going to have yesterday (we went out to dinner with Doug and Lauren instead): Curry chicken salad, corn and green beans.

K - best mosey...Scout's having a conniption fit and hasn't eaten either. Happy Monday...stay healthy. Later!

Columbus, Here I Come!

It's been way too long since I've been to Maggie's! I think I went in February but haven't been since. Can't wait to hang by the pool and just chill (not that I haven't been doing that for the last month or so anyway but you know).

I've walked the dog and eaten breakfast (I packed last night) so when I finish here, I'll go shower and hit the road. Eva has an orthodontist appointment at 11:20 so I'm not in a huge rush to get there. Our plans are really to just hang by the pool and enjoy each other's company.

While I'm gone, Jim will finish the mulching in the front yard and then finish painting the house. As Jim put it, our house is really starting to take shape (17 years later). I'm so happy with the landscaping in the front. I just wanted something simple and that's what it is...nothing to obscure the view and instead, enhance and brighten the front of the house.

Trip sent me a text that they'll be going to Raeburn Saturday and did we want to join. Uh, yeah! Considering it'll be near 100 degrees, it will be much needed.

Speaking of Raeburn - CONGRATULATIONS BECKY! Yesterday was her LAST shift at the hospital and today she is officially RETIRED! So freaking jealous of  excited for her! Can't wait to celebrate! We gotta figure that one out!

And that's all I've got. Time to get clean (it is sticky out there) and head north! Happy Wednesday! Stay healthy! Later!