My Day Today

Today I did a variety of things, from really enjoyable to slightly boring, lol. So what did I do?? Let me tell you:

- Drove to town to WalMart for a battery for my watch & they said they don't sell this brand so won't change the battery in it in case they damage it, so recommended I take it to a jeweler. I drove to the mall, a short distance, and took the watch to People's Jewelers. They changed the battery & it cost me a couple coins short of $12! Oh well, I bought this watch Wednesday evening at the auction.... a $150 price tag (before taxes of course) and I got it for $31 including taxes & buyers fees. I had no working watch so really needed this. Now I don't need to dig out the cell phone every time I need to see the time.

- drove to Canadian Tire & bought some welding wire & welding rods to take to Tuggy for my trike.

- went to Great Canadian Superstore for some groceries & cat litter.

- finally done with errands I drove to Falkland, a 1/2 hour or so away, to Tuggy's place. I got there just before noon & we worked on my trike for about 5 1/2 hours. We worked on the shock mounts, the box for the back, cleaned up the rearend in preparation for painting it, and cleaned some of the engine covers. A good day's work.

- since I had taken Tuggy out for dinner (supper?) last time I went out there, today he took me for eats. We shared an order of fish & chips at the pub. A very nice snack.

- drove back home & unloaded the groceries & a few other things from the truck into the house. With Reba having a sore foot I don't make her jump down from the truck just now, so to let her out to pee or to bring her in from the truck when we get home, I have to lift her off the tail gate & down onto the ground as best I can. She's somewhere around 90-100 pounds, so this is not a small job for me, though she doesn't fight it which does help.

- watch TV & blog & read various things on the net, including a bit about youthology review. Also, play PathWords on Facebook. I am very bored with Facebook and see it as a waste of time, so only play this game there and do some messaging with one friend I've known since I was 14.

- and of course I've fed all my animals except the rabbit & chinchillas who will be fed very soon. I am about to go do that and to get myself a snack, then do my teeth and get some sleep. Tomorrow is a full day with an early morning.

Hmmmmm.....

I was just listening to the weather forecast on TV while surfing the net. The forecast is incredible for this time of year, sunny with a high of +5 Celsius. I'm really loving this winter, it is so unusually warm & sunny.

I was reading about HGH:

HGH (Human Growth Hormone) is believed to be the controlling hormone of many functions and benefits associated with youth, such as vitality, smooth skin, energy and resilience. HGH is naturally produced in the pituitary gland of the brain.

As people move past age 30, natural levels of HGH drop off dramatically, about 14% per decade. Lower levels of HGH are associated with the aging process. As HGH levels continue to drop, the aging process accelerates. Research indicates that by increasing the natural amount of HGH in the system, the body may be able to reverse some symptoms associated with aging, like weight gain, loss of lean muscle, wrinkles, bone density, sexual drive and more. Although it is not clinically proven, HGH is sometimes referred to as the fountain of youth hormone.

I wonder if I was to take some hgh supplements if they would help me loose weight, have less pain from Fibromyalgia, & Arthritis as well as deteriorated discs, and if it would help me remember things a bit better. Hmmmm.... Maybe Reba could use some too. Do they work for dogs?

My Bedroom

I am relaxing on my bed while watching TV and working on my laptop. I look around and see the bird cage on the vanity (my bed, vanity & high boy dresser all match, antiques that used to be my parent's and they gave the set to me when the got a larger bed years ago now). In that cage live 2 beautiful blue Pacific Parrotlets, Friday & Miracle. The cage is covered up now as it is every evening so the birds can sleep with the TV & light on in here. I also notice how good the new curtains look in here. The ceiling is white, the walls a pale blue, I have 3 plants (green of course) in here near the window. The curtains are white with blue & pale purple flowers and green leaves. I would show you a photo if I could, though my camera died earlier today so the batteries are currently in the charger getting re-energized. I wish it was that easy for me, haha. I also see, below the window, the china cabinet I moved from the living room. I tried to give it away, but no one wanted it, though it is not a bad piece of furniture. On it sits 2 large Dieffenbachia plants and a ghetto blaster (only the cassette player works now) on top of which is a beautiful candle set I was given for Christmas (wooden holder with several small candles and rocks). Beside the china cabinet is a wooden 'TV' table with a bunch of books, the 3rd plant, a ceramic owl & a cast iron pig with wings as well as some magazines. On the other side of the bed, beside the vanity, is an old telephone bench with a bunch of stuff on it including the alarm clock. At the foot of the bed is the high boy dresser, 4 drawers, and the TV on top of that. There is also another antique dresser in here and a bunch of other stuff that needs to be sorted & gotten rid of. My spinning wheel is in here too. What won't you find in my bedroom?? Well, one thing you won't find here is diet pills with ephedra, among a few other things.

Health Update... better than no date at all

Every 3 months, I visit a nurse, Della, & my doctor regarding Type 2 Diabetes. Before that visit, I go to the lab for blood tests that show what has been happening with my blood sugars over the past 3 months. This time around, I was a bit worried as December was a "tuff" month with all the sweet goodies over the Christmas season... then in January was my birthday and more sweet goodies. When I was first diagnosed with Diabetes, I had an A1C (that's what the 3 month test is called) of around 13.... after that it was 11.4 (being new it was redone before the 3 months), the next 2 were 6.3. Under 7 is good. The one this time was 6.1 so even a little better. Della & Dr. P. are both very happy with these readings and with the loss of 18 pounds, though I have gained 2 back so must loose them again and a bunch more. What they are not happy with is my cholesterol levels. They are higher than they should be even for a non-diabetic, though if I was one of those, it would be no big worry. However, a diabetic should have even lower readings than 'normal' people, so I am classed as 'high risk'.

The doctor would like to put me on drugs for this and I keep refusing, working at bringing the levels down with diet & exercise. This woman would rather take vitamins for men than resorting to meds with bad side effects. I am open to finding some more healthy ways of bringing down these levels. I've heard oatmeal is good, and have also hear Niacin helps. I do eat oatmeal fairly often and am thinking I'll get some of the Niacin that doesn't cause hot flashes.

Reba's Foot

I think I am going to soon need some anti aging products at the rate my life is going. My poor Reba dog has got a very bad limp which has been worrying me a lot & the cost of vets is just so out of line that I can't go there. Reba has never liked having her feet touched and now that she has pain it's not an easy thing to get a good look. Slowly, bit by bit, I've been able to see that it's not the ankle as I first thought, but is the inside toe on her left front foot. Then the other day I got good enough look to see an open wound at the base of the nail on that toe. Today, she was on the tailgate of my truck and I was able to get another look. I could actually see down the inside of that toe nail!!! I don't have a clue as to how this could happen, but I do know I have to get more information on it as she is in pain and that makes me age a whole lot faster than normal. Somehow this will work out in a good way... it has to. Other than that sore foot, Reba is doing well.

A Few Random Thoughts

- As usual, things have been very busy these last weeks.
- I haven't had enough time to read for quite some time and I miss reading. Things I have/want to read include: Toastmasters manuals, speech and leadership projects; another Toastmaster manual on how to do a Speech Craft thing toward earning my Advanced Communicator Gold award; books... Radical Forgiveness by Colin Tipping (about half through this incredibly great book) & The Astonishing Power of Emotion by Esther & Jerry Hicks; magazines from Toastmasters & TOPS as well as Mother Earth. To name just a few.
- mesothelioma treatments are available on the internet.
- I've been trying to do some research on the internet on a few different subjects.
- more thoughts to come...

Just Thinking

A friend of mine is coming over to visit for tea. He's been talking about building his own cabinets for the house he's building, vs buying already built ones and wants my opinion on some he's going to go look at. I don't know if he'll be using plastic knobs or metal or wood ones, guess I'll see that soon too. The house he's building is really cool. It's round!! First he built a huge square deck, then built the round house on top of the deck. Most unusual, though it's really great. It's around a 30 minute drive from town, way up a mountain where there isn't even hydro lines. He packs water from a nearby creek & has a generator for power, planning to install solar panels. This house will remain 'off the grid' if he has his way... though it sounds like he may not have that luxury.

Stray Thoughts

- Life has some strange ups and downs that come out of the middle of nowhere.
- Some men are jerks, some are not.
- I must get back on the weight loss track again. I think I have gained some this week. Will find out in the morning at TOPS.
- some people think mortgage life insurance is not needed, I think it a good idea though I don't have it.
- I enjoyed Ugly Betty tonight.
- things were kind of dead at the ANAF this evening and on top of that Wendy & I were both tired so not our usual 'good time' selves. Just sat & talked til around 9:15, then went home. She has to work in the morning.
- had to get more Gaviscon today due to acid reflux and to burning in stomach.
- reading lots about Clicker Training birds these days, getting ready to do some of it.
- I would love it if Mewsic would settle in... she keeps jumping on, then off, then on, then off my bed, landing on my stomach each time.