A Women's RV Forum run by Women RVer's!

Morning. Thought would see how many of you are awake and let you figure out what today is

It’s cloudy here this morning and 57°. Rain is slowly moving in. Looks like it’s going to take all day to cross the state they say. That’s OK. Time to take a break away from leaf work. We have had four wonderful 70° days in a row here and even the nights have been mild. The dogs have been enjoying laying out on my deck and even sleeping out there part of the night. They are out there right now before the rain comes.

Velda, A smaller size lawn tractor, similar to what I have would work very well if you only have 3/4 of an acre. I have neighbors here who have less than that and use lawn tractors. Once I remove the bagger system on my tractor, it is not as big looking as it really is and there are smaller lawn tractors out there. The thing is, they do the work and reduce your physical work and time. . My neighbor whose yard I am doing this fall has a postage stamp yard and his lawn tractor is one size bigger than mine. Mine is equipped with a 42 inch mower deck, so I am cutting a wide swath of grass every pass. But I’m sure you have probably been investigating things and know that there are self-propelled lawnmowers that have bags on the back and do up your leaves too. You just have to empty the bag periodically. But it would be a finer shredded pile then bagging up whole leaves. I also use my tractor for doing things in my yard when I have to haul some stuff around like maybe some bags of dirt or something. But you have your handyman so you probably don’t have to do any of that.

Got the errands done yesterday and picked up three few things for my craft projects. So today I am going down to Houghton Lake to the Artsand Craft store, hit the Walmart, see if I can get my truck tires rotated while I’m down there as there is a tire place that I do business with. Then have lunch out and head back home.

So, time to hit the shower, wash my hair and mosey on my way long. Have a great day everyone.

Good Morning to All - It is 7:00 here in Amado AZ and it is 38 degrees out - we've had the furnace running all night and Bill is still freezing. He just put a sweat shirt on and the throw over his legs. We are not so patiently waiting for the RV Tech to arrive at 9:00 give us the news about the LEAK from the toilet. It seems to be getting worse, more towels down on the floor soaking wet. Hopefully it will be an easy fix - that can be done before we have to leave here. Also hope he can fix the main door.
Yesterday we went out to finish our stocking up shopping - I like the paper goods from here better than what is available in Mexico. Also things like soup and pickles and tarter sauce.
Our friend who live just a few miles from here came over yesterday with birthday cake for Bill and me. It is always so good to see and visit with him. I even cooked dinner last night, partly to use up things, and partly cause it was getting cold in here.
I am so sick of the politics on TV.
All the pictures from Italy and Greece were great - makes me want to go. Also the pictures of the trees changing color - miss that from Indiana. Here the desert is very green still.
Hope all have a great day.

Good morning Sue. (and Carol! You snuck in ahead of me!)

I planned to sleep in but not happening so far...

My phone rang shortly after 6am. I didn't recognize the phone number so I ignored it. Then got a text message so I checked it out. It was the manager from the other shop wanting to know if I could work there today from 8-1. I went to respond...my phone gives me several optional responses to choose from...and my finger grazed over the "Sure!" response! No! no! no! I quick typed up a message saying my finger hit the auto response and that I actually can't work for her today due to other commitments. By the time I got that typed out, she had already responded with "Great! Thanks!" I sent the message anyways. I know she was disappointed but I worked Saturday, Sunday, Monday (9 hours!), and will work another 9 hour day tomorrow. Just don't have the time or energy to fit in another shift!

So now I am awake and can't get back to sleep!! It is chilly in here but I am all cuddled up under the blankets which feels good! I was also awakened at 4am by Romeow doing his zoomies all over the house and up, over and around me! Still a crazy kitten!

Am going to try to get a little more sleep here, otherwise I will just get up and get started on something, and then take a nap later on.

No wonder I am chilly! My phone says it is 44* outside right now! That can't be right! The low was supposed to be 55* which makes more sense. But it says 44!

Just checked Weather Underground and that says 54* and that makes more sense. I think if it was 44* and with the windows all open, I would be freezing my butt off! It is a bit chilly in here but not that cold!

Good morning. Have had my coffee load and will get busy here soon.....not yet tho LOL I need to figure out what to cook for dinner. I am thinking salmon patties but we shall see.

I had a good day yesterday. My neighbors daughter has a small hair salon so my neighbor went with me to show me where it was located. It is tucked in a house behind another building so I never would have found it. Feels so good to have all that hair off my neck. We then went to lunch and it was very good. We both had fish and chips and it was tasty. I need to go to the store and get the ingredients for the 3 ingredient potato soup that I make with Potatoes OBrien. I have the potatoes but not the country gravy mix. I want to pick up some Better than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base instead of the box of chicken stock. Everyone says it is much better so will see if they have that in this town ha ha If not I have the box of chicken stock and the potatoes so just need the Country gravy mix. I am going to make it and share with my neighbors. Also make a loaf of bread..........finally.

Sue, I have a nice lawn tractor Mel bought maybe 10 years ago. It's great on the less than half my years that's semi flat, but no leaves fall there. It won't work where the leaves fall, because the area is part flower bed and the rest rather steep concrete- not practical for a tractor, or safe. My mower is not safe on concrete either as it would risk chipping blade on the concrete! Oh, and added fun, California is outlawing all gas power lawn equipment over next few years and I don't see a battery expensive tractor in my future !
Looks like nice day here, it's 68° already.
Velda

Sue, now the title confused me! Days just seem to run together anymore! I would love to have access to a tractor like yours! Would sure make quick work on the leaves around here. Since the accident I’m finding my back just doesn’t seem to tolerate the bagging of leaves. About an hour at a time is about my limit. Frustrating to say the least. Luckily I have a chiropractor appointment this afternoon so we’ll see how out of alignment I am. We stretched it to 3 weeks instead of 2 and at that time I wasn’t doing what I’m trying to do now. And with the warmer temps it’s been nice being out in it! And to think these aren’t even my trees! Fall sure is falling! Tina, hope the “date” went well for the pup. Beth, soon you’ll be heading to warmer climates! The snow just adds to your cold temps but not really necessary this early! Shelia, hope your family can come together and get your pellet stove running. One thing we learned about the pellets is to try to get hardwood pellets rather than the softer woods like pine which is so common. We never had much ash with the hardwood pellets. Luckily I still have several bags of them since where we got them closed up. And I don’t use the stove very often. So I haven’t try to locate another source. Good news, Sandi, that your luggage caught up to you! I so enjoyed your photos of your trip. Thanks for sharing them with us and the history of the different locations. Barbie, things are really moving along for you! I finally put together a pot of potato soup today, I’ve been thinking about it for days! And wonder of wonders it’s a much smaller batch! Maybe I’m finally getting the hang of cooking in smaller quantities! Guess I’d better get moving and get ready to head out in a bit. Travel safe if you are on the road but otherwise just have a good rest of your day!

Sue, you didn’t fool me. You typed that heading because you couldn’t remember what day it is. Had a difficult morning, helping Brother with paperwork. Geeezzz. Life is getting more difficult for old timers. I have a caring family to help but if you are 86 your children aren’t youngsters and have their own problems. I hesitate to call them. Had curbside at Bjs then home to put stuff away. It’s a foggy, misty yuck day. Went yesterday for new glasses, 2 for $127 which cost $300. Will be staying home for awhile, have no more money and no more patience. Lol. Sheila, my friend, I worry about you. Hope life gets easier. Be safe

Taking a little break. I started cleaning up the deck but the lawn guys showed up and put the kabosh to that! Need to wait until they are done mowing and blowing, and the dust settles before I go back out. My eyes are already irritated from what little I did on the deck. So much dust all over everything out there!

In the meantime, I am getting a few things done inside, getting my laundry together to wash, etc. I stopped at a yard sale here earlier this morning (I got up since I couldn't get back to sleep!). I found a cute little purse that has lots of pockets and is a little smaller than the one I have now which is good. My current purse is ready to be replaced but I can never find one at a store that I like. This one was only a buck!

All is quiet now, so I guess I will head back outside in a bit. It is warming up now with the sun out but still cool enough to be comfortable. Things are getting busy around here! Lots of snowbirds coming back and getting their places cleaned up for the winter, too.

Have a good day!

Sue, I know it's Tuesday but it feels like it should be later in the week. It was a nice 65 degrees when I went out to feed this morning but now it's 78. The line of rain came through sometime during the night and I got about 1/3 of an inch of rain. Every little bit helps. Sunday CC and Nicky didn't show up to eat and I was so worried about them. Monday morning I found CC curled up on the back porch and he looked like he had been in a fight. I brought him in and started giving him Amoxicillin hoping he wouldn't get an abscess and have to go to the vet. Nicky finally showed up for breakfast this morning. I didn't see Buddy this morning. He is one of the neighbors cats I had neutered. I don't really consider him one of my cats but he usually spends the day on my front porch. He has turned into a very nice cat. Tiger is the other one I had neutered and he still wants to fight. He usually comes around once a day to eat.

Carol, hope you can get your toilet fixed and get to warmer weather. I make my own tarter sauce. I just mix mayonnaise and a little bit of dill pickle relish. I like it better than the ones I can buy.

There are too many recipes on Facebook. This morning I copied one for Crustless Pecan Pie for One. I have some pecans in the freezer I need to use. I use to always make Pralines to take to campouts but got out of the habit. I kept digging in the freezer looking for something for lunch but nothing looked good so I made a hamburger. I love cooking a hamburger patty in the air fryer.

Shelia, I agree with Sharon, your family needs to get that stove working. You and your mother shouldn't have to be cold.

I put fresh catnip in a cat toy I had made and Stinky is in love with it again. The other cats don't get many turns with it because she lays on it.

We are still enjoying the work the CCC did. I'm afraid that most of the young men today would rather hang out on the streets, rob people, do drugs and shoot each other. Three people were shot in Abbeville the other night. This is a town of less than 15,000 and I'm afraid to go to town after dark. There are streets I wouldn't go down in the day time.

Martha

We had rain and it looks as though we might get more. Not enough but at this point every drop counts!! It is warm and pleasant but cold front of course is coming. Sheila I agree have the pellet stove fixed. Can you go to a lower altitude for your breathing problems and maybe go to Quartzside at least for awhile? You need a break.
The couple who took care of our yard retired and on the same day two of my friends lawn people quit! The one friends who lives in Fl said the man doing her lawn had to quit because his wife was jealous. My friend is 79. Shirl I was just thinking the same thing the other day that it is difficult for us old timers. We don't have kids so no one really to help. I keep up pretty well but seems as though this last year it has become more difficult as more companies seem to be forcing you to go online for appointments or questions. Doctors particularly are hard to reach on a phone and when you do get someone the connection is terrible. It's not my hearing because I don't have trouble hearing friends on their phones. Sharon I hope your chiropractor helps with your back pain I'm sure it is frustrating. Karen I've tried the Better than Bouillon Roasted Chicken Base but I like the low sodium Swanson's chicken broth better. I'm making red lentil soup with chicken thighs in it this afternoon. I havn't been cooking much but most restaurants are closed on Monday and Tuesdays here.

BJ thanks for letting me know. I already have the Swansons low sodium so think I will just use that since I am giving quite a bit away. I dont like experimenting when I have promised people something, I like tried and true. I still need to go to the store tho as I dont have any Country gravy mix. That is what thickens it and does a good job so will use that again.

Martha I have made that pie only I used up some crust I had in the freezer. You can make it with or without the crust. I personally like the crust with the Pecan pie as it is super sweet anyway. I do use the Karo syrup instead of the Maple syrup but I need to try the Maple syrup one day. I know you have to add some flour to thicken it if using the syrup. Glad all your cats are present and accounted for today. I made some dipping sauce from mayo, ketchup and some horseradish, wow it was super good.

It was really cold last night, and I had to turn on the rear furnace to supplement my heaters. Then when I finally got out of bed and got dressed this morning and opened up the blinds, I discovered that I had left one of my front windows open about 3"! It had gotten hot in here earlier in the evening, so I had opened it for a few minutes but then forgot to close it! Plus, there has been a lot of wind noise in my RV cab, so when I stopped at the mall today, I reached over and discovered the passenger's door was not completely closed, so no doubt that caused some of the chill last night. I don't know why the open door signal was not showing on my instrument panel, but it wasn't. Anyway, it should be warmer tonight.

It was supposed to rain all evening yesterday and all day today, but we got a good break from the rain. It finally just started again, so I was able to go out shopping and unhook and re-hook everything up before it rained again.

Tomorrow I go to see my doctor's PA here in Eugene. Nothing seriously wrong, but I wanted to discuss a few things and figured since I was here, I'd get my blood work and checkup done in person. Because I was part of a research study, I get blood work done every 4-6 months wherever I am, and then it gets sent to the doctor, and we have a telephone conversation. It has been almost three years since I have stopped the pills I had been taken and seen my oncologist in person. They will follow me forever to see how long I stay in remission with the treatment I had.

Also, a large part of homelessness is the lack of affordable housing for people who are working and making only minimum wage or slightly above it. It is much easier in states like Michigan and Ohio where housing is cheaper for low income people to afford an apartment. If you get a chance, watch the TV show "Bargain Block." It is filmed in Detroit, where two young men buy falling apart homes for as little as $1,000 and fix them up to sell for around $100,000 or even less. And they make money doing it!! They even set the houses up with appliances, refurbished furniture, and beds because low income people may not be able to buy all the furniture they need. Their style is a little strange sometimes, but people are happy to buy these now sturdy, attractive, and livable homes. And the neighbors are thrilled to have people moving into their neighborhoods.

Check out this article about the pair: https://www.thelist.com/430199/the-untold-truth-of-hgtvs-bargain-block/

Karen, did you have to bake the pie crust first or did it cook with the pie? I think I would like to have the crust too. A little bit of pecan pie goes a long way because it's so sweet.

Martha

Martha yes I prebaked the crust at 400 for 15-18 minutes.