Thursday stuff and other stuff...

Well May is over tonight and June is upon us tomorrow.  Summer is my favorite time of year with the long lazy days, the pool, the blue skies, not too many people around.  This will be my first summer alone.  Ever.  I'm not quite sure I'll love it as much as before but I'm hoping I will.  I might take another cruise too.  Why not, right?

The political ads are running nonstop now.  I am so sick of them I cannot tell you.  In fact I think most people feel that way.  They start so early and by the time the election is closer it heats up and the lies just go on and on.  I am to the point that I don't believe anything from them.  You know, how do you tell if a politician is lying?  His lips are moving.  Yeah, that.  I've gotten pretty good at changing the channel really fast when I see one headed my way.

Today is lunch with my canasta girls and a nice game.  They have made some menu changes and there are some really good salads.  Chef is really creative and will make adjustments so they are not to fattening for me.  Well for anyone but I'm the one that always asks.

And that my friends is all I know today.  Hope your Thursday is totally tits.  Mine too...

Wednesday is MahJong... and other stuff!

Photo credit:  Geppy Toglia/AFP/Getty Images

I am so worried about Ivana and her family in Bologna.  Another earthquake hit yesterday, another large one.  Buildings are crumbled and people are dead.  I found Ivana one night when I couldn't sleep and I was hitting the "next blog" button and since then we have become friends and she is also friends with many of you now as well.  Some of these crumbled buildings are 700 years old.  What a tragedy!

Mother Nature is a powerful gal.   And if you think this won't affect you, well, this is where the world's best Parmesan cheese is made.  And they also have some of the loveliest people.  I am so saddened by all of this.

Next I guess I should tell you about yesterday.  It wasn't a bad day at all.  I did get in the pool and do my walking 20 laps and then some other exercises with my purple noodle and then I sat in the shade and read my new Kindle a bit.  I love it for reading.  I love the iPad for everything else.  Reading is the only thing I don't like to do on the iPad.  Why?  Because it's a bit heavier and the screen outside is not as easy to see.  My advice?  Get both if you can.

And then there was poker!  I lost $18.00, not too bad for a whole night of fun times with snacks included.  

Today is a great day for me as I get to spend part of it with my MahJong gals.  They always make me laugh and have a great time for a few hours.  They rock!

Hope your day is as good as mine...

Tuesday at my house...

Tuesday already.  This is one of those weeks where I never quite remember what day it is.  Y'all.  Today feels like Monday.

There is no canasta game today but I do have poker tonight.  I am going to the pool and do my 20 laps (walking in the water) and some exercise and then float around on my noodle for a bit.  Then upstairs for lunch and maybe a nice nap.  I have the day all planned out don't I?

Yesterday I was really sad most of the day.  I tried really hard not to be but no such thing.  Sarge was such a patriot that I really believe that day was harder for me than birthdays or other holidays.  I hope when I get to the one year mark it will get easier but it hasn't so far.  It's been four months today.  One third of the way there.  Some days it feels like yesterday and others it feels like forever.  I know that makes no sense but then sometimes I make no sense, even to myself.

Thanks so much for all the encouraging comments yesterday, they helped me a lot, they really did.  I'll do better today, promise.

Rest in peace my darling...

These are my hands being presented the flag that covered my beloved.  I will remember this exact moment forever.

And this is the day that we pay respect to our soldiers both here and fallen.  Especially fallen.  This year my heart breaks as he is now among those fallen warriors.  He was a hero in every sense of the word and a gentleman and loving husband for 44 years.  I miss him with an ache so deep I cannot express it.  But you already know that.

Enjoy your holiday weekend please but remember too, won't you?

Freedom is not free.

Sunday stuff...

These little cuties are tucked in a garden in front of the condo.  Most people don't even notice them.  I always do.  It's very good advice.  Very good indeed.

My guest left yesterday morning after a lovely breakfast with the duck.  It was an amazingly uplifting visit and I treasure it.  

Last night I got a call from a friend inviting me to the club on Monday for the cookout.  I told her I'd go.  She is a darling girl and I won't be home alone on a very sad day for me.  It really saddens me how so many people just think of Memorial Day as a three day holiday and the start of summer.  Many remember but I'd love for everyone to know why we're off work and cooking out.  Please take just a moment of your day for our fallen heros.  I thank you from the bottom of my heart.

Saturday stuff and other stuff...

Well my houseguest is leaving today after we have breakfast with the duck.  Holy cow yesterday was a doozey!  First we went to lunch at the club and then we went swimming and then we went to the Cheesecake Factory for dinner (asian lettuce wraps appetizer 260 calories) and a tiny piece of cheesecake and then we went shopping.  I walked so much and also walked in the pool so much I was so exhausted I could barely think.  It was a wonderful day!  Perfect actually.  One of the best in my life.

And the menu said my asian lettuce wrap appetizer was "under 400" calories, when I got home I looked up what I ate and it was way under.  Way to go me!  It was fabulous too and plenty of food.

And she gave me a Kindle too.  I have never used one, I am excited to try.  We have it all set up with my books that were on my iPad now, lots I have not read yet.  I plan to read out by the pool.  

So that's it from (exhausted) me for now, hope your Saturday is lovely.  Mine too..

Friday is my day off!

This is the pool at Margaritaville in Grand Turk.  See the bar where people sit on the stool and drink? Lots of beer?  Would you get in that water?  I wouldn't.  I don't care how hot it is.

We had lots and lots of rain yesterday with my guest here but we managed to do a few things anyway, we just couldn't go to the pool as planned.   Maybe today.  She is leaving in Saturday morning so it's a short visit but a very good one.  It's so nice to have a person in the house with me!

We are having lunch today with the duck too.  It's shaping up luv-er-ly around these parts.  Hope the same for you!

Thursday with a visitor...

I am waaaayyyy up there.  I love living in the sky, there is so much to see and I especially love watching a rolling storm.  Their power is amazing.  Well it's great unless you are actually in it, then it can be a bit scary.  

I remember a few years ago Sarge and I stayed through a hurricane.  The storm shutters were closed tight and the building is very strong, much more than the ones they are building today.  Anyway it came through and blew out a wall in the living room (the one that is now red).  

First the electrical plates shot across the room and then the wall blew.  Air got inside the wall between my condo and the one next door.  Now imagine this in the dark because of course there is no power.  No thank you, I don't believe I'd do it again.  I went outside the apartment to the hallway (interior of the building) with a chair and sat there all night.

So my houseguest didn't arrive until evening so we didn't do anything yesterday but will today.  That woman I call Kaye (because that's her name) will be here so we'll either go to the pool or the fruitstand (both of which I want to do) and maybe to lunch.  Then after that maybe the duck will come over.

Have a lovely Thursday y'all.  Me too...

Wednesday is MahJong... and other stuff!

This is why I had to move my car for two days.  The City of West Palm Beach made the condo do this to several hundred parking spots:

Why you ask?  I have not the slightest idea in this world.  It's a private parking lot in a private gated community.  Can you stand it?

So yesterday several things happened.  First of all (and best of all) I officially hit the big 50 pound loss on the scale.  I have been hovering around it for a while now but it's official.  200 sticks of butter gone from my a$$!

Next as you remember it was canasta with the gal with the memory problem.  It wasn't too bad, she had a fairly good day.  I won a few dollars and no one lost much and other than one incident with her getting mad it was a good day.  I don't know how much longer this can go on but I'll certainly try as long as I can.  It can happen to any of us for sure.

Then there was poker last night.  Yee haw, I won about a hundred bucks!  I won early and then nothing all night and then at the end I won again.  Totally tits!

Today I have a visitor coming for a couple of days.  I am excited about this.  And also MahJong with my "good" girls!  Hope your day is as good as mine!

Tuesday things...

Let's look at Atlantis today, shall we?  I took this a few cruises back at sunrise from our balcony.  I'm not a huge fan of Nassau or the Bahamas in general but I sure do think this is beautiful.

I think I messed up at the grocery store this week, I just didn't get much in the way of actual food and I have to hunt to cook something.  I have a small head of cabbage and some potatoes so I guess I'll make a pot of that.  Low cal and I like it but it's slim pickings in my house.  I might have to hit Publix before Sunday rolls around.  Especially as I am having a visitor later in the week.  

I did okay at MahJong yesterday, I Maj'd twice and broke even on the money.  But I really don't like their game, not them, they are fine, but the rules they use.  Today I have the gal with the memory problem.  That's really getting hard but we are all trying to be very patient and sweet.

You know how the first of the year all the commercials are about weight loss stuff.  Well summer is almost here and they are at it again.  I know there is no secret or magic formula and it's plain hard to do so most of their claims just make me mad.  You have to eat less calories than you burn.  All the other krap is just that in a nutshell.  Krap.  The dumbest one now to me is the one where you "shake shake shake" this stuff on your food and just eat anything you want.  Yeah, that works.  Uh huh, that and a bottle of snake oil and you're golden.  

Tonight is poker too, I almost forgot about that.  It's going to be a busy day for me today.  Hope your day is totally tits.  Mine too...

Monday is the start of a new week...

So okay I took this photo in the mirror because I wanted to show you I tried on my new size L pants and size 18 top and look!  They fit!  Now I promise I'll start putting photos of something other than me on the blog now.  Sorry.  I was just so excited and y'all have been so supportive.  I know I still have quite a way to go but I am hovering at 50 pounds now and it feels wonderful.

Today I am subbing in a MahJong game that I don't particularly like.  I don't like their table rules and they play for a good bit of money too but I told them I'd fill in for them in a pinch and they called so I shall go.  And what the heck, I'll make it fun too.  You'll see.  My MahJong gals are so much fun and these are old biddies but I'll laugh and play anyway.

Today those people I call Steve and Jane (because that's their names) come and shine up my condo.  Do you know they even dust the walls?  Kaye still comes every Thursday and will until she is ready to retire but they come every other week and really clean.  Kaye says she wants to work until she's 80 and that's over a year away but that's fine with me, she is so good to me and was to Sarge that I could not ever stop her as long as she wants to come.

A month or so ago our condo had the parking lot redone and it was a royal pain in the a$$ to park all the cars but it got done and we were back to normal.  Well for some reason the City of West Palm Beach is making them "re-stripe" it.  I don't know how they can do that, it's private property in fact once you get in the front gate even the roads are private but somehow they did it and now we have to move all the cars again for another two days.  Buggers.  The parking lot is fine thank you very much.

I guess I have groused enough for one day.  I'll make it a good one no matter what.  You too, ok?

Sunday in paradise...

196 sticks of butter off my a$$ and a few other places!  And yes, before you look I DO have makeup on my waddle so there.  Thank you for noticing! (ha)  I don't know if this is what did it or not but two days ago I ate 1400 calories and yesterday I ate 1100 calories to shake up my metabolism.  Or maybe it was just time for the plateau to quit, whatever it is I am happy to be on the losing end of this battle again.

Today is my day with the duck.  We always manage to have some fun and still go to the Walmart.  Grocery day comes around fast.  

Have a lovely Sunday y'all.  Me too...

part deux, a new beginning...

Well here it is, the new beginning.  I hope you will come with me and I hope it will be a fun ride.  I am going to try to stay upbeat here at least most of the time.  I'll continue telling you about my everyday life and try not to bore you.  I don't know now if I'll continue to post on the muffin53 blog any longer or not.  Things are changing for me and I think a new look and a new blog might just be the ticket.

And so my friends (and hopefully not the one who is not), come over here and we'll try to have some fun.