Last Tuesday of March

[Colliemom]

Morning. Cloudy at the break of Dawn here. Currently 18° Heading to low 40’s today and some sun. 1-2 inches off snow late tonight into tomorrow morning again.

Thought you might like a bit of a laugh to start your day. I think we can all relate to this, especially when we grocery shop. This column was in the Sunday paper I get every week.
https://www.record-eagle.com/news/lifes ... 042ff.html

Shirl, they do make netting to cover strawberry plants to protect them from birds. Something for you to look up and find. Another thing to put your detective skills to work on

I’m going after potting soil today, so that I can plant those rooting geraniums. Will take the dirt out of the one big pot and plant them in there because it can use about three of them in that pot. There’s one in there now, so it will welcome some fresh new soil. Will change the other geranium and impatiens too. Then they should be looking pretty good by the time I can leave them outside at the end of May.
Got a couple other stops to make while I’m in town. Hopefully will get the mouldings cut for the bathroom today. Then can install them tomorrow since it looks to be a snowy morning.

Finally finished those crazy yard birds I was doing. Now to varnish and off they go to neighbors. Just got the pattern for part of the spring decorations for out by the sub entrance, so will be working on that. Piece of plywood is on my list today too. Won’t be putting them out for a bit yet though until the snow is gone from the flower box.

[Redetotry]

Good Morning Sue and all who come in later It was 32 this morning with frost here and supposed to be in the low thirties tonight. It is supposed to get into the low 50's but mostly cloudy. Another dreary day. I passed the time yesterday by spending $$$. I bought 3 pair of Birkenstocks, which are pretty much the only brand of shoe my feet like. I doubt I keep more than one pair as I order a couple of different styles other than my usual Arizona. Then I finally bought a new computer ACK!!! I was so confused as to what I needed as far as memory and storage so I called the Apple Online store! Yes I actually found a number for them. I was really pleased with the service and actually learned a lot about my computer. I asked about software, I use Word/Excel for Mac but they told me how I could transfer my files to the new computers version. They said call whenever I needed help and also an hour one on one online session is included. Now I just need to get a new printer and check with Frontier for a new modem as mine is ancient. If my computer wasn't so old I could have sent it to them as a trade-in which surprised me. Even with the promised help I'm having the lady from the computer store come and get everything set up. I don't think my skills or patience would get me through the process.
The spending continues today as I took my van in for semi annual checkup and I know new tires are going to be on the bill.

Barbie sorry to hear you took your home off the market. Could you run some ads and sell it yourself? I hope you can find a part time job!

I hope everyone gets a bit of sun today, it just popped out here so hopefully I'll be motivated to organize my desk or maybe read my book...

[Othersharon]

Good morning Sue and all that follow. It’s another gloomy day here so far. We had rain yesterday afternoon into this morning so it’s really wet outside. But glad it’s rain and not snow! Buddy did have his surgery yesterday and they texted me about 1:45 that he was ready to be picked up. He’s not happy with the cone but guess he’ll just have to get used to it! But he is definitely full of energy! He carried one of his toys out with him earlier and we played fetch for a bit. I cut it off after a few minutes since he’s supposed to be taking it easy! They chipped him too yesterday so that makes me feel better. I’m kinda paranoid about that for some reason! Maybe too many stories about lost pets that can’t be reunited with their owners because they weren’t chipped. After a night of not sleeping well Monday night we got a decent sleep last night. It went better than I thought it might! Plus I had them trim his nails! Still can’t locate my clippers! They’ll appear when I least expect them or not looking for them! So today will be an inside day and I need to run the vacuum over the living room and my bedroom. Sure hoping Buddy quits shedding so much soon! I know being more lab that that’s part of him and will always shed some but this has been crazy. With warmer temperatures I’m starting to see the spring flowers starting to bloom in some areas. There’s hope that spring will come! Shirl, my son has a life sized plastic owl on his railing of their porch to keep away some of the birds. It’s balanced so that it actually moves to make it more realistic. Seems to work pretty well for them. Enjoying reading about the travels of some of you. Makes me want to plan a trip to somewhere! I want to at least do a couple of local locations to see how Buddy reacts. Meanwhile we’re working on his manners! I’ll be so glad when the sutures are removed in 2 weeks and we can get out more in social situations! And when it warms up enough to go for walks without his eyes tearing and adding to his discomfort. So that’s about it for me today. Coffee is done and no excuse not to get busy! Have an enjoyable day and be safe.

[Shirlv]

Morning Sue and all, sunny 47°. I did check for berry protection. Problem is you have to buy a large piece of netting and I have a 16” pot. Lol. I have a pack of bamboo stakes so will make a trellis over the pot to hold the fabric when ever or what ever I get. Will give me something to do that is garden related. #1 daughter gave me an early Mother’s Day gift of 6 pretty wicking flower pots. The water reservoir isn’t as big as I have but much prettier than what I rigged up. I’m looking forward to nice planting weather and also renewed the prescription for an inhaler. At my age it could be worse. #2 daughter is going to Lowe’s so placed an order for a Lemon Drop Fern, don’t have one of those. Lol Thinking flounder tacos for dinner. Be safe

[OregonLuvr]

Good morning. Another rainy damp day. I am about over this dang rain. I need a few days of sunshine. The ONE day we had a week ago was not enough. It is warmer today tho 34/52. I know it rained all night. Tomorrow might be better, predicting cloudy with some sun breaks. I was going to go to the store today but decided I didnt need anything that couldnt wait until tomorrow.
My neighbor gave me a Chromebook they bought for Doris (94yo neighbor) but she didnt use it much even after the granddaughter set it up for her. She didnt like it. So they asked me if I knew anyone that could use it. I offered to buy it from them as noone in their family wanted it. They wouldnt take any money for it. Said I was really good to her Mom so please take it. Well allrighty. It is a very basic Chromebook but thought I could use it out on my deck when the weather warms up and I am sitting out there having my coffee. I had to reset it to factory defaults. Dang I forgot how small these things are. I worked for a few setting it up but it is tucked away until later. THEN I woke up this morning and my Fitbit versa wouldnt turn on. Well this happened once before so googled what I did before and now it is up and running again. Geez electronics can make you crazy. I need to get my video doorbell down and recharge it also as it is not hard wired but the battery lasts a long time.
Henry is on the job this morning then gets 2 days off ha ha Finished my coffee so time for some breakfast and get busy. Going to wash the floors and clean the bathrooms today. Then will see what else transpires.

[chalet05]

What a day! Got up way too early for me to get car serviced at 9 a.m. On my way to the car, I ran into my across the hall young neighbor that isn't home much and I haven't seen her since before Christmas. Asked if she got water from Christmas Day flood - knew she wasn't home. She came home to soaked carpet and no idea why - couldn't figure out what she had done. No one even checked with her!

Mechanic shop is Mexican run and very nice guys, but cold office for waiting! Brrrr! Bill was surprisingly low, but I didn't look until I got home. They forgot to charge for oil and filter so I'll stop next time I'm out.

On the way home had to wait at stoplight for Sheriff lights and siren. Learned via FB that S.W.A.T. teams and multiple county law enforcement on the go to the north of me. Word is someone in house with multiple weapons. Turned the scanner on. Wenatchee bank silent alarm went off - so far no report it was false. Just had alert from law enforcement for public shelter in place! Said on scanner alert worked - whatever that means!

Beats the normal every day stuff I guess.

[JudyJB]

Got a good night's sleep last night after my exhausting day yesterday. That was one of the days when I could have used a towed vehicle because parking this big rig can be a pain and is hard on my shoulders. But, then again, I am glad most days that I do not have an extra vehicle dragging along behind me. All I need to do to head out shopping is to put slides in, throw rug in shower, and put a few things away inside, plus unhooking electrical hookup. I usually time my trips when I will be dumping tanks.

I had some eggs and toast for breakfast/lunch and did some straightening up. Also made some barbecue sauce so I could heat up some ribs for dinner. I bought some bottled barbecue sauce last week but tossed it out because it had that fake hickory smoke flavoring that I really detest. Looked on the shelves for some without it, but its in everything, so back to making my own. Basically, I just water down some ketchup, then add garlic powder, vinegar, worchestershire sauce, hot sauce, brown sugar, soy sauce, and a little lemon juice--everything to taste. (I make it sweeter for grandkids, as some of them do not like it hot.) Might add a bit of maple syrup this time, also. I warm it up in the microwave and let it sit so the flavors combine, but don't really cook it. Keeps about a month in refrigerator.

And I was supposed to roll out my cookie dough a couple of days ago, but never got to it, so that is on my schedule today. Also, is supposed to be 50 degrees today, so I might go for a walk, especially since the wind has died down. Tomorrow, I drive back to Sante Fe and visit the museums on Museum Hill, where there are three or four next to one another. I will park in the dirt lot next to the botanical garden across the road.

[Bethers]

I'm at my location for my volunteer position. Wow, I'm the only RV site, but lots of staff. I've already forgotten almost all the names. I'm parked in a fenced (with a locked gate) area up by the maintenance building. It's a fenced area to keep wild animals out. I have 2 gate codes. The one for back here and they have a gate by the entrance from the road that is locked when they close. When I got up here and parked, the maintenance man waved as he left and locked the gate. Of course a couple minutes later I was plugging my electric in and had no electric. Ty and I walked down to the visitor center because I needed to get my car (I unhooked down there) and the woman in charge had no idea. Said the people just left yesterday and had power. I promised I didn't break anything and another lady came out of an office and asked if the maintenance area was locked up. I said no, just the gate. So she and I came up and I found the breaker panel and yep, two breakers were off, one being the one I needed. Whew. Big whew because it'll be in the 30's tonight and I'd be unhappy without my electric heater. I'm not liking the stickers. Ty only got one in a pad which amazes me because the bottom of my shoes were totally covered! I checked to make sure they have a fridge. Heck they have a full kitchen. So now I know I can bring lunches, etc. I was actually surprised to see the number of cars in the lot of visitors. I'm told Thursday, my first day, has a school group coming. Should be interesting.

Anita, amazing that they forgot that part of the bill. They'll be thrilled that you'll be stopping by to take care of it.

[snowball]

according to the car we got up to 36 today.... on one of the hills close to town there is a couple of "fake" deer I guess the purpose is to make you slow down cause of the possibility of deer for being fake they actually look pretty real... but I noticed that there is more of their body showing than the last time I paid attention so on the hillside the snow is melting... it's a south facing hillside... we have so much snow that needs to find a place to run off to... mom's drive way is pretty bare except where it's not and that is more ice than snow... when I took the garbage can down last night about got stuck on some of that ice... it was breaking as I was trying to go over it finally had to go around it a bit..
my big chore of the day was going to store.... how can a person go to the store and not really find any you want to eat??? drove around and around trying to see what looked good for supper nothing in the deli nothing in the freezer so finally ended up with pot pies..
Mom has taken a liking to celery stuffed with either cheese or peanut butter I left a small plate pretty full of a mixture of it really thought she would eat some of it but all of it???
and whats with NO STRAWBERRIES??? went to Albertson's the other day probably Friday maybe Thursday no berries Smith's today had no berries so bought raspberries although she doesn't munch on them a easy and I also got a tray of shrimp and cocktail sauce...
was going to get the chicken and mustard for a recipe I saw they didn't have the correct mustard it actually calls for two kinds.. so will look for it somewhere else perhaps in Utah when I go down...
I am surprised Anita that the management didn't check with other apartments to see if any other's had issues... or that the tenet didn't go to them and tell them about the water in her apartment... depending upon the amount of oil used it would be a costly over site... they will be happy to see you...
I am cold tonight actually all day... not sure why but hopefully my heated throw will heat some days it does and some days it doesn't. I guess tomorrow I really need to get out the vacuum
glad you made it safely to your volunteer spot Beth I am sure once you get used to all they want of you you will do great... how many hours do you have to put in in a week?
I wonder Shirl if some nylon netting would work since you are going to put up a bamboo tee pee type thing you could just get a small amount think its a pretty wide piece of material
you all have a great day
sheila

[Cudedog]

Mom has taken a liking to celery stuffed with either cheese or peanut butter I left a small plate pretty full of a mixture of it really thought she would eat some of it but all of it???
and whats with NO STRAWBERRIES??? went to Albertson's the other day probably Friday maybe Thursday no berries Smith's today had no berries so bought raspberries although she doesn't munch on them a easy and

No strawberries?

In most parts of the U.S., at this time of year, if your local grocery store does have strawberries they likely were imported from Mexico, or from some other county even further south from Mexico.

How do I know? In California we have a law that some kinds of produce must be labeled with country of origin. I just read the packaging. The print is pretty small, and difficult to find, as one might imagine.

I try not to eat too much fresh produce that is imported from south of the border because pesticide/herbicide use standards are not nearly as stringent in other countries as they are here in the U.S.

California is a large producer of strawberries; they grow well here. I have a large strawberry patch in my back yard, and I grow them organically. I don't use pesticides or herbicides (nor do I keep anything like this around) partly because I consider them to be dangerous, and partly because I am always afraid I will forget and leave something awful out and my dog will get into it. If I don't have it, I don't have to worry about it.

No berries yet, just a few struggling blooms that fall off when there is a frost.

We have had a lot of rain here, when it is cloudy and overcast it tends not to freeze. In between storms, when the night sky is clear, we are still having frosts.

Anne

[Redetotry]

I'm with you Anne I would never eat strawberries from another country and only will eat organic if from US. Look up the dirty dozen for the rest of produce that is included or not if you would rather not know sometimes that is probably best. I do try and buy what I can locally that I know how it has been grown although at my age I have begun to figure what the heck. I realize I'm just fortunate though to live where there are a lot of organic or mostly organic farms and that I have two freezers to stock up for the year.

[BarbaraRose]

There is a farm near me that grows strawberries and gets a good crop twice a year. Right now they are picking and selling fresh strawberries daily. I did notice at WM the other day that their strawberries are not totally ripe. About a third of each berry is still yellow! Those aren't like tomatoes that continue to ripen. I have never seen unripe strawberries sold like that. Especially now during strawberry season! I did hear that a lot of the strawberry crop up near Napa got flooded out bad from the storms so there might be a shortage of strawberries being shipped out to other parts of the country due to that.
I have 4 tiny berries on my plant so will hope they grow nice and big and juicy soon!

Beth, what will you be doing there? Do you just get the free site for your work?

[Bethers]

I've had good luck buying frozen strawberries. Sheila, you could just take out a handful at a time. I actually like them still partially frozen. I started buying them when I was making a healthy drink daily and being frozen they helped give the drink a better consistency.

Barbie, I'll be in the visitor center/gift shop 3 days a week, 9-5. I'm sure I'll have to give info and I know nothing at this time lol. Other than the site, I get full use of the washer and dryer in the maintenance area. And they have a bathroom with shower in their if I want to use it.