Out and About

The high temperature today was:  17 degrees

Partly sunny

Tonight's temperature will be:  -15 wind chill

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I was barely awake and not even dressed (9:00) when my doorbell rang--it was Dar.

"I just wanted to come over before I go off for the day."

"What's up?" I asked.

"I have to go to the hospital and get my blood checked--you know because I am now on Coumadin."

"Oh--your PT/INR?  What is your number?"

"I have no idea what the test is called or what the number is.  I will have to ask.  They just tell me if I should take more or less."

"Okay--they probably want you at 2.8 or 2.9.  See what it is, just for the fun of it."

"Did you get your gas bill yet?"

"Nope.  I'm on the budget plan, but still worry about how much it is and what I might have to owe them come settlement month in April."

"I know," she says.  "I didn't have insurance until the first of the year and I had all those tests done in December.  I am going to owe the hospital and doctor's a small fortune!  It will take me forever to pay them back."

"Yeah--lack of money can get scary!"

"Hey--I wanted to tell you.  I got a treadmill!!"

"You did?" (to myself --I thought you were poor.)

"Yes.  I got it on sale.  It was listed at fifteen-hundred dollars and I got it for eight hundred!  I am so excited!"  (to myself--hm-mm. She can barely walk over her because of her Afib and shortness of breath and now she is going to walk on a treadmill.  That she can't afford.)

She says, "I probably should have taken that money and paid my doctor bills, but...he's rich...he can wait for the money."

So off she goes and I jump in the shower.  I don't know--I just don't know.  

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I ran up to Wal-Mart to pick up my 3 prescriptions.  This year, the company that I have my prescription coverage through, lowered the monthly payment from $25.70 to $16.50.  I was thrilled and I have no deductible.  When I got my prescriptions, one of them that is normally $7.00 is suddenly now, $16.00.  Who knows why--I'm going to blame ObamaCare--just because I hate it.  I e-mailed the company and asked why because I could not reach them by phone, and I have no reply as yet.

As I was leaving the park to go up to Wal-Mart, I had a heck of a time seeing over the huge snow-piles at the entrance/exit.  I had to turn left onto quite a busy road.  I tried to stick the nose of the car out as far as was safe, but man....So when I got home I called the office and told them they needed to top off those drifts because they were too high to see over.  Now--a lot of people here drive pick-up trucks and vans, and with those, you can probably see over the drifts.  For those of us who have cars--it is darn near impossible!!!  Apparently, they have quite a few complaints, so we shall see if they do anything about it.  I ought to report them to the county sheriff.

I went searching for my bread maker--because I have had a huge appetite for some home made, warm bread and I need it to use for my noon sandwich.  I remember that I put it away two years ago.  Well, I could not find it anywhere!  I sat and pondered on that and then I remembered.  After Fred died, when I was cleaning things out, Jennifer had mentioned she wanted a bread machine, so I gave her mine BECAUSE, I didn't think I'd ever make home made bread again--as Fred is the one who used it all the time. So--she probably hasn't used it more than once in the last two years, but....under the circumstances, I can't very well call and ask if I can "borrow" it.  

I remembered that my nephew gave me a Target gift card for Christmas.  I NEVER shop at Target, but I went on line to see if they had any bread makers.  Guess what?  They have them--on-line only.  So I found one for fifty bucks and ordered it.  With the gift card, I had enough so I only had to pay for shipping and tax--less then $20.00..  COOL!!!  I can hardly wait, but now....I have to buy some bread flour, yeast and oil.  I prefer that to the boxed bread maker stuff they have.

Tomorrow, I have to take my car in for the estimate on the exhaust system repair.  I think I only have to have a new pipe as my muffler is quite all right...so that shouldn't cost too much.  Only problem, nowadays, the price for labor is $80.00 an hour!!!

My sister and brother-in-law stopped in for a quick visit as they were at the Lowe's and Home Depot just up the road.  What a joy it is to have her so close they can stop in a lot.  Susan is so depressed about the old bathroom they had off their bedroom and not able to afford to go on with their re-vamp of it and the bedroom that she is just painting the walls and trying to brighten it up a bit.  They were hunting for a four-step "project" Ladder.  They have a 3-step, but as short as she is, it just isn't enough to reach the high ceilings in that house and she doesn't like a regular step-ladder, as the narrow steps hurt her feet--whatever!  LOL

I think this is the one she settled on.

She gave me a quart jar of her canned Bread and Butter Pickles--our grandma's recipe.  I love these things.  Will eat them right out of the jar with a fork.  She also gave me a footed amethyst glass dish that was Mother's.  I put it over my cupboards along with my other colored glass jugs.

Back in the late sixties, when everyone was decorating with gold/orange/green/brown, our mother had a lot of blue/green/amethyst.  She loved jewel tones.  She died in 1970 and I had a bit of her glassware.  When I moved in 1988, I packed away all of it, as I didn't have room for it.  When I moved here in 2003, I started unpacking all these boxes and finding all this blue and green and purple glassware--I had forgotten all about it.  My carpet is Emerald and I have a blue chair and couch.  At the time, I wondered what I had that would go with those things--as I unpacked, I realized I had my color scheme.

Then I remember the two glass lamps my mother had made at the lamp store--on green glass and one amethyst.  My Dad and step-mother had the green one out on a table.  She hated it, but my Dad loved it--probably because he remember when my Mother had them made.  She didn't often get anything really pretty, so she was especially proud of them as she had designed just what she wanted.  The amethyst one was up in their attic and I asked step-mother if I could have it.  It didn't work, but amazingly, she hadn't thrown it away. My friend Ernie re-wired it and now I have it.  It is on the table in the corner, along with a piece of REAL amethyst that Fred's Mother had (she being a real rock hound!)

I thanked Susan and told her she could have it back when I was "done" with it.  She said, "I hope that isn't for many, many years!"

I had potato soup for supper (again), 3 days in a row now and it is gone.  I have to go food shopping!!!!!  I think I will swallow my pride and go to the food pantry up the road.  They allow you so many pounds of food for your household size.  At least I might be able to get some hamburger for meat loaf and I'd really like a small roast to cook in the Crock-Pot along with some carrots, potatoes and onions.  I think I can get all of that at the pantry.  

I have been helping my writer friend, by researching self publishing companies and now--she has me working on her children's e-book.  Working on the layout to put it into a print book.  No problem--right?  AHA!!!  The pages in the e-book are much larger than those allowed for a print book.  She has a sixty-some page book that must be condensed into a 32 page book.  Her illustrations, which are larger too and many, are all so wonderful and it has been difficult trying to pick out just the needed ones to make the story flow.  Also the illustrations are larger and need to be made smaller to fit the page template.  I am having a great time doing it though--I get so engrossed that hours go by AND she is paying me.  She doesn't realize I would do it for free--well, she sometimes reads this blog, so now she knows!!! :-)  Heart U Chrissy!!!

Dar called back to let me know her PT/INR is at 2.9!!! YAY!

Who knows what tomorrow will bring?  Hope I live to talk about it, LOL.