No Mistake!

I double checked with my doctor who ordered the nuclear stress test for me to make sure this was the test he wanted me to take. It is. When I found out how much my part of the cost was going to be, I came very close to just cancelling. I decided to not piss off my new doctor this early in his attempt to manage my health care. So....I have sucked it up and will go take the damn test. I'm a bit apprehensive about it still! For some reason, I am afraid it might find something wrong.

Mission NOT Accomplished!

Once again the cheese was gone, but the trap was still set. I guess I don't know how to set it right, yet! More D-Con was gone! Now I have peanut butter on the trap. The little sucker needs some variety!

Still on a mission...

When I went out to check my trap this morning, I saw the mouse scamper away. I'm sure he had a full stomach because once again the cheese was gone and the trap was not sprung. I took my trap to my mom's to let her show me how to do it right. I will try again. The D-Con is disappearing. Mom told me that D-Con is warfarin, which is what her Coumadin (blood thinner) is made from. It makes the mouse bleed to death inside, but it may take several days. Now I'm starting to feel bad about tempting the mouse with bait. I didn't know it would kill him like that!

My DRAGON.....

and I do choose to SLAY it, is that pesky little mouse. I can't find any useful purpose for mice...well, if I don't count Mickey and Minnie. Last night the cheese went missing off the trap, but it was not sprung. I guess I don't know how to do it right. Today I purchased three of those ultrasonic pest thingies and put two in the garage and one on the patio. They are supposed to repel mice, roaches and spiders. I haven't seen any roaches yet!! Spiders are abundant.

On a scary note involving yet another snake....my sister-in-law was moving a soaker hose in a flower bed at their lake house and didn't see a coiled copperhead not even 6 inches from her hand. She did not get bitten, but it is a miracle that she didn't. She killed the snake.

I have a mouse!

No, not in my house, but in the shed where I keep my lawn mower. Everytime I move the lawn mower, he runs out. Last night I bought d-con and put it out there, but I won't know if he's dead if he eats that and goes off to die somewhere. I need proof, so today I am going to buy a mouse trap. Will I ever be done with varmits??? I am going to buy those utrasonic devices that plug into the wall and put them in the garage because once they find a nice warm garage for winter, they will find a way to come inside. That is absolutely unacceptable!!! There is a huge field behind my house and I am sure it is full of mice looking for a warm winter home. Not mine, PLEASE!!!!

2 down and 1 to go...

Had the mammogram and the bone density tests. Next it is the stress test. Bone density was a piece of cake. I just pray that everything is OK because by the time one gets to 63, all kinds of things start falling apart. I'm glad my mammogram was in October. Now it will be easy to remember next year because of all these pink ribbons everywhere in October.

HUH?

I got a note from the hospital where I will have my stress test next week which outlined all the things I can and can not do before the test!! WTF! The last time I had a stress test, they put a few electrodes on me and I got on a treadmill which they constantly manipulated faster and higher. I was on 9 minutes before they got my heartrate up to where they wanted.

This next one is a whole different animal...it's a Myoview Treadmill Stress Test. I had to look this one up and it involves an IV, isotopes nuclear stuff, no food or drink since midnight. My appointment is at 11:30 and they said prepare to stay 4 or 5 hours. What! With all that and NO food I might actually have a HEART ATTACK!

Chinquapins.....

Not many people have heard of chinquapins, but my brother and I love them. They are a very small chestnut type nut. They look like an acorn, but grow inside a burr. When that burr opens up, it is east to get the nuts out, but not before then. My brother called today and said the chinquapins were ready and he was going to the trees to mow under them and knock some out on the ground. I ate so many of them that my stomach still doesn't feel good. In the picture, it's the little brown acorn looking nut that falls on the ground. It's a sure sign of fall although the temp doesn't reflect that autumn is here!

I goofed up!

My mom called this morning and started talking about Dad's appointment with the hearing aid man today and how we would handle lunch. I had totally forgotten and had no idea what she was talking about. I have a mammagram scheduled by my doctor for me at 1:30 today. It is hunting season so my brother is out chasing Bambi with his bow and arrow. I could have changed my appointment, but my sister-in-law is going to take them. I need to pay closer attention to when their appointments are. In my defense, I did not make any of the 3 appointments I have coming up. They were all made by my doctor's office!

Hot Hot Hot

Unseasonably hot weather is messing up my yard plans. First, I have azaleas that are supposed to bloom again in fall. That is not happening and if and when it does happen, it will be too close to frost and the blooms or buds will probably be killed by frost. The next hold up is sowing rye grass seeds over my yard so that I can have a green lawn all winter. I can't do that until close to frost because rye grass has to have cool weather to germinate. Soooo.....everything is on hold until we have some cooler weather. We had it for 2 weeks, but now the highs are in the 90's again! I thought I had moved to a place that might actually have at least a couple of seasons....unlike my former home that had one season....HOT!

Wow...fast work!

My new doctor's office called Saturday morning and told me my blood work was OK except the cholesterol was slightly elevated (216). It has been within 15 points of that for the last 15 years and the good cholesterol is always fairly high, which should make up for the elevated total cholesterol. They are sending me the bloodwork, so I can look it over. I keep these so I can compare and see where I am having any changes. He recommended a low fat diet (yeah, right!) and Omega 3 fish oil capsules. I already had the capsules, which I have started taking again. Also, I have read many times that garlic capsules also help with cholesterol. I already had those too, so I started taking them again. Maybe they will make up for my not doing a low fat diet!!

Today they called again and have 3 appointments already set up for me starting tomorrow for a mammogram, bone density, and stress test. I am glad they are so thorough and their follow-up is awesome.

Busy Saturday

Many things were going on with me yesterday. I took two ninety year olds from my aunt's assisted living facility ( she was one of the 90's) to a birthday celebration for another 90 year old. That isn't as easy as it sounds!!

Yesterday was election day in Louisiana and I went to the Chief of Police's home to a party to wait for the returns. He was re-elected with 56% of the vote. He was the only one though. All the others are in run-off's. It was a good time. I had 3 beers and one glass of champagne. It's been a long time since I had even that much to drink. OK..June...not as long as I thought!!!

I also got involved in watching Texas A&M and Texas Tech! Wow. Such a good ball game, but I was for A&M !


Today I went to a new members' luncheon at my church...so now I am full and about to take a NAP! I even closed the garage door so no one knows I'm home!!!

Lazy, lazy me!!

All my days are weekends now, but I have not forgotten how much I used to look forward to the weekends. Today is a lazy day consisting of nothing more than watering the yard!

Got myself a new Doc...

I have been battling gout in one big toe for several years. When it really flares up, it is so painful that not even a sheet can rest on my toe. That has only happened twice and it requires high powered pain meds. Recently, it has just been annoying and only slightly painful and will not bend. Sunday, when I could not wear the dress shoes I wanted to wear, I made the decision to do something about it. I knew there was a medicine to prevent it and make it go away, but no doctor ever treated the cause before....just the symptoms. This, in spite of the fact that my blood tests always showed elevated uric acid, which is the cause of gout. He immediately put me on a med to make it well and prevent it from coming back.

He is very thorough. He is scheduling a stress test (because all diabetics need one at least once a year), a bone density test (which I have never had), a mammogram (which is a year overdue), and who knows what else he will schedule after he gets those four vials of blood analyzed! After all his poking and prodding, I am in pretty good health....at least until the blood tests come back. Heart sounded good, lungs sounded good and I have lost no sensation in my feet due to diabetes. And on top of all that, he is some EYE CANDY!

Gardening again...

I went to Mom and Dad's today to see how my little fall garden was doing. Some of my collard greens bit the dust, so I planted some more. I have a couple of squash plants and some cucumbers along with some tomatoes ,onions and turnip greens. Yeah...I know...I am completely anal about digging in the dirt and growing
my own vegies, but I have a lot of lost time to make up!!

My dad has been feeling much better for the last two weeks. He is now completely off prednisone and some of his breathing meds. He even had something positive to say about his new hearing aid and he rarely ever says anything positive...... except about his children!!! :)

Election time in Louisiana

Being a new resident of the state and city makes it hard to be a good citizen and vote. I am going to vote, but only for the chief of police since he is the husband of the lady from whom I bought my house! At least I have met him. Oh, yeah and I have been invited to their home for a party Saturday after the polls close. That has to count for something!! Unfortunately, it appears that everybody running is a Democrat.

Feeling the LOVE...

Even I am watching the Saints and re-opening of the Super Dome. Louisiana is just "aflutter" tonight and rightfully so. I must say they did an awesome job with the pre-game festivities. It was all done with class. Good Going, Louisiana! At least with this one we weren't embarrassed to call Louisiana home. I just hope they don't stick a microphone in the governor's face. I may have to come back and edit this post because she would surely say something stupid and embarrass us all.

One year ago today!

One year ago today my town was virtually destroyed. Of course, most of the people were evacuated after having learned the lesson from Katrina. Many of the Katrina evacuees were evacuated to Orange, TX, which is where landfall was. Those poor souls had to evacuate once again. I was in North Louisiana taking care of Mom, who was recovering from triple bypass. Fortunately, my home was spared, but it was easy to make the decision to move closer to my parents. None of my friends were spared. Everyone had damage. I am now happily planted out of harm's way.

Scrapbooking

The wind is still so fierce that working (or doing anything else) outside is not an option. My motion light stayed on all night because of the wind. I don't know when it is going to end, but a cold front is supposed to arrive today......not soon enough for me!

Since I have been staying inside, yesterday I baked brownies (bad idea). Today I have been making scrapbook pages. Six more were completed today. This is my favorite one done today.

West Texas????

It sure feels like West Texas around here today. The wind is unbelievable. I had to close the garage door because of the majorly strong winds today....and they are HOT winds. This does not feel like the first day of fall. We have wind advisories today...WTF! To me, that means stay home and be a slug. I tried to water the yard, but the wind just blows it to the neighbor's yard. I'm not down with that! It's comical to watch the hummers try to fly and to hang on to the feeder as it blows in the wind.

Completely zonked!

Today was my day to take my mom and dad to appointments in Shreveport. Mom saw her cardiologist and got a good report. She doesn't have to go back for a year. I do not expect her to be able to go a year without a heart episode, but I can hope.

Dad had to pick up his new digital hearing aid, which I took him to get fitted for a couple of weeks ago. It's a tiny piece of equipment costing $1300, but he will do whatever it takes to be able to hear better. His old hearing aid just didn't work so good any more.

Days like this just totally zonk me out. I am exhausted!

Mom was right....as usual!

Western Pygmy Rattlesnake.......venomous, by the way....known around here as a ground rattler....yep, that's it. I looked it up and the pictures on the internet are closer than any other snake. I bet my brother won't be laughing so much now!!! It wasn't nearly as big as the one in the picture, so I'm thinking youngster with no rattles. None of them get very big.....duh, pygmy!!

My comedy of errors!

I bought this stuff. Apparently, it is just ground up moth balls. I put it all around the house outside. Now my whole house....inside and out.....smells of moth balls. I can't win. Now I am just hoping this stuff will dissipate soon. I'm not too fond of moth balls!!!

Varmit Update!!

My mom saw my snake this morning and she thinks it is a ground rattler. My brother hasn't seen it yet.

While mowing the yard this morning, I saw at least 3 of those green frogs jumping out of the way of the lawn mower. Never saw that before.

As I pulled the lawnmower out of its spot under the shed, something darted out from under it...too fast for me to see, but I'm thinking mouse!

My little bit of heaven is not quite as heavenly as I once thought!! I'm off to Lowe's to see what kind of varmit repellent I can find. :)

Total Traumatization

No ONE on this Earth is more afraid of snakes than I am, but as I walked out into my garage a little while ago this is what greeted me. Thank goodness the broom was not in its place, but was standing against the wall right there. I managed to get him under the broom head and stand on the broom and jump up and down. That did not faze that sucker. Then I managed to keep him under the broom even though he was crawling up into the broom straw until I could move with him across the garage where a hoe was hanging on the wall. That's when I finally slaughtered him. I haven't done the research to see what kind it is, but I can assure you that is next on my list. My brother spent our childhood and adulthood scaring me with snakes. He just told me recently that he was sort of afraid to do it any more because at my age, I might have a heart attack!! This snake is light gray with dark gray markings on it. It is about 12 inches long, which might just as well be 12 feet to me!! What is the deal with me and all my varmits??? Those frogs are starting to look good to me!! I prefer frogs to snakes! Geez....what a choice! And I am not even near any woods. I have a wide open field behind me, a house on one side, and a cleared site for another house on the other side of me.

My view on The View

I tuned in The View last week because at one time I used to like Rosie O'Donnell. My purpose was to see just how long it took her to throw in her political opinions. Not surprisingly, it only took one day before she started slinging her little digs in oposition to GWB or anything conservative. She really stepped in it Friday when she said "extremist Christians were just as bad as extremist muslims". What an idiotic statement!!! I despise her pseudo-scholarly rhetoric.They need someone like Michelle Malkin to be the other host to help out poor conservative Elizabeth Hasselback. Of course, Michelle has much too much class and intelligence to ever do a show like that. Rosie wouldn't have a snowball's chance in hell in a debate with Michelle!!

I liked The View better with Star even with all her superiority (self-proscribed). Meredith Vierra kept the show on a sort of even keel, so it has been tanking, in my opinion, since she left.

Dum dum hummer....

Update: I just went out to check on him and he is not there unless he is dead somewhere and I didn't see him. I hope he is gone!


I have one dumb hummingbird in my garage. He has been there a long time now flying so near the ceiling that he cannot see the big huge opening that is the DOOR to the garage. I went out and tried to help him find his way out, but had no luck. And yes, it is a HE....judging by his ruby throated bright colors!!

Selling tickets to my spring yard...

I received in the mail today a catalog from this place along with a gift certificate for $125 from my cousin. Now I am going to get busy building more flower beds so I can fill them up with bulbs that will bloom in early spring before anything else does. I am going to be like a kid in a candy store buying these bulbs!! Unfortunately, I have already ordered some Daffodil bulbs and it's too late to cancel that order. I am going to have bulbs coming out my ears, but I can promise a show place on my street next March or April. There are thousands of choices in the catalog and I don't know where to begin, but it will be fun to try. I don't want to put them in the backyard because no one will see them, but I may have to put some there.

Wow! Just Wow!

I went to a choir concert tonight at my church. The music in the church was the drawing card for me and what impressed me most on my first visit there. The Passion Singers are a group of 11 that stand in front of the choir and are the main singers. They are just fabulous. One could not find a more professional sounding group in any city in the USA. It was a wonderful praise service! I will not miss another one of those services.

The Amazing Race!

I love this TV show. Tonight the muslim pair was the first to be eliminated. Ooops! I guess allah was too busy blowing up Christian churches to help those guys!!!

Lost my "get up and go" again!

Our wonderful week of cooler weather left us. Today it was 95 again, so I just stayed inside and watched football. One cannot be a resident of Louisiana and not know what's going on with LSU, so I watched the LSU/Auburn game. "We" lost! OK..I can be an LSU fan until they play Texas or A&M, then I have to stick to my loyalties. Most of the game I was sleeping in the recliner. Right now my Alma Mater (Louisiana Tech) is playing, but I don't have much interest in that now either. I just want my energy back and cool weather!!!

Long time friends....

My best friend from high school came by to visit today. She lives in Massachusettes, but has built an awesome plantation home not far from here on Caddo Lake. Unfortunately, the market is so bad where they live now that they can't sell their home there. This is her home waiting for her to move into here. Pretty awesome! She had her mother with her and they had been to see my mom and dad before coming here. WE roomed together when we first went to college, but due to my penchant for partying and her.......not so much.....we parted ways.
We went to dinner to pig out on some crawfish and shrimp . !

template change

Update: Now it's back to normal!


My template changed for no apparent reason. I checked another blog that uses the same template and it has changed too. I don't like it, but can't find out what happened! GRRRR!

I'm HOOKED yet again!

This time it's Survivor. I was on the phone long distance at straight up 7 P.M. when the first Survivor was coming on. I did not want to have to drop that phone and pretend I lost the connection, but I would have. I am going to have to program the VCR to record it in case that ever happens again. Unfortunately, I don't have DVR or TiVo yet! I have seen every season of this show and they keep getting better plus Jeff Probst is just HOT!

Today's project completed....

I have never cared about decorating outside until I got a house. Now I can't wait for Christmas! Since Christmas is slow in coming, I did a little fall decor today. Have a look! Pretty cute, huh!

Fall flowers

Yesterday I planted two flats of yellow snapdragons and 8 yellow mums in my little flower bed around the tree out front. Those flowers are really crammed in there, so when they are blooming, I hope it will be a show piece flower bed. I just love working in the yard. My hard work always manifests itself in my yard. I am so anal about having every thing just perfect.

My neighbor bought a pewter bird bath at the PX at Barksdale Air Force Base yesterday. We have been discussing birdbaths for a while. Hers is beautiful and she offered to go back and buy one for me (since I can't shop at the PX), but I had to decline because the damn thing has frogs on it. Have I mentioned lately that I don't like frogs? She thinks I'm nuts! Someone gave my mom a rain gauge that has a frog wrapped all around it. It's ugly. She knew I didn't want it, but she offered anyway!!!

Engine restarted.....

My engine, that is! The cool weather has me in Farmer Brown mode again. My neighbor came to get me this morning and we took our 1.2 mile walk. This walk is very different from 1.2 miles in my former neighborhood in Texas. I live in a very hilly area now, but in Texas where I came from there were NO hills. So it is a pretty good, beneficial walk.

After we returned, I went to Mom and Dad's to check on them. Dad said he is feeling better, but he just looks bad to me. I cleaned out the rose garden and threw all the old, dead rose bushes away. My brother came over and tilled the area that I cleaned and we got it all ready to plant collard greens and turnip greens. Yeah! Good soul food for the winter!!