Wine tasting tomorrow at the fall festival *rubbing hands together* Should be a fun time and a nice drive, the trees are looking really beautiful.
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Wine tasting tomorrow at the fall festival *rubbing hands together* Should be a fun time and a nice drive, the trees are looking really beautiful.
Today it is perfect in Seattle.
Do you guys find that it takes you awhile to feel at home some place or
does that feeling of homey-ness sink right in after you've unpacked and
have surrounded yourself with your things?
It takes me a few months before i begin feeling at home. Possibly because it takes me a few months to unpack and put things away.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hydrangea
It IS pretty today in the PNW!
And our roof is being replaced as I type. So double joy. :)
(I am an hour and half north of seattle.)
Definitely takes time, although having your things with you helps a bit.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hydrangea
Going to the fall festival was inspiring. I have some ideas of things I think that I would enjoy painting and that may sell well there.
I went to the grocery store to buy mostly steak, chicken, & produce for our dinners this week. After finishing with my checkout, the cashier said, "I liked everything you purchased. Everything except the sweet potatoes. I don't like sweet potatoes."
I wonder if he compares grocery baskets all day long, picking and choosing his favorites. Does he create superlatives?
Most Random Assortment Basket.
Worst Monday Basket.
Getting Lucky Basket.
Cat Lady Basket.
I don't really know.Quote:
Originally Posted by Hydrangea
For the first time in my life I feel like I am definitively "not home", which doesn't mean I know where "home" is.
Home relationally is mostly a sense of people I can speak freely too, share values with, and are traveling the same path in at least some ways.
As I'm older, I realize there are certain social situations or environments that I just don't really even bother trying to feel intimacy in.
Which one of those would you be?Quote:
Originally Posted by applejacks
.... that dude must not have had sweet potato fries. Not liking sweet potatoes is a huge loss. I feel bad for him.
This week was probably Healthiest Basket.Quote:
Originally Posted by UDP
I've stood in line with many cat lady baskets.
Angry people suck.
An SLI friend recently became homeless. She will be staying with me until shr can get back on her feet. It's nice to have a caregiver around and nice that we can work as a team. It's all about teamwork
Take a picture of her feet. :lol:Quote:
Originally Posted by Maritsa
I'm learning how to use fermentation as a food preserving/enhancing method.
This past week I tested out fermenting ....
* garlic and onions (it helps make the onion taste a bit more mild),
* Potatoes (24-48 hrs only. This removes much of the starch and sugars from the potato bits),
* Plums that were starting to go bad (strained it today and set it up in bottles to build the carbonation for a cider-like feel to it, also dehydrating the strained out solid parts for sweet munchies)
* Green cabbage,
* Purple cabbage,
* Apple cider vinegar the easy way (adding acv to apple juice so the apple juice will transform to acv)
* Grapefruit vinegar the easy way (same as above except using grapefruit juice instead of apple juice. Richard wanted to know if it could be done, I said let's find out),
* Apple cider vinegar from scratch (using chopped up apples which were going bad. Cool thing about this method is it uses every part of the apple, including cores. I did remove the seeds though...just in case),
* And today I started a "Ginger Bug" which uses grated ginger in sugar water to ferment to the point where the liquid can be used to start a soda. Like I can take some fruit juice and add the "Bug" liquid to it and it will eat up the sugars while creating the carbonation and/or alcohol. In a week or so I will know how this goes.
* And i started a sourdough starter. I'm nervous about this one. I'd rather have bought a prepackaged starter because of it having good yeast and desirable bacteria in it, but i'm using the wild fermentation method which picks up whatever happens to be available in my home. No guarantees it will taste good. I'm sure I will eventually do a prepackaged starter to also help expand the "buggies" available in my home.
((Talk about an incentive to clean my home. I had wanted to do this a few years ago, but we had way too many cats and cat dander floating around. Now we have just one cat who spends most her time outdoors, and one dog.))
My two LSE friends think i'm crazy. Why not just buy a bread mix? Or use baker's yeast? Or make soda bread instead?
(Because the sourdough making process alters the flour to make it less problematic nutritionally and gastrointestinally)
My SLE homesteading friend thinks I'm crazy for not just learning to can food, like she does.
(Because canning requires a lot more work, more personal energy, more external energy, more items to store, destroys vitamins, and creates environments that botulism and such likes.)
I'm a little nervous with the experiments, but the more I read about fermenting, the more comfortable I feel with this direction. And if these early experiments go bad, it won't be a total waste, cuz I used free and inexpensive ingredients.
(Hydranga is Birdie!) Well I just moved! I can say that I need to unpack and surround myself with my things and the all the things need to have a place before I feel really at home. Its been almost two months now and I get those pictures up in just the right place pretty fast. I cannot really be at peace til I do. I spent a lot of time picturing in my mind beforehand where things were to go. I have sewn curtains and have more fabric to sew (which I will do as soon as I find the papers I need for new CT license!) That helps a lot. Like other life changes, it starts with enthusiasm and postiveness. Sometime after there is a sense of disillusionment coupled with negativism when the drawbacks show themselves. Since I knew to expect that I just accepted it. [It was not a big one for this move as I do feel at home with my husband here, in his home he did so much work on. It feels right. The drawback here is while its stunningly beautiful - the kind of beauty I love best - woods, pines, oaks, birches sassafras, ferns and many rock outcroppings and streams and little lakes - it is much like the mountains I love - but it is more populated. The mountains I love are forest preserve and less populated. Also I found myself missing certain places at home. However, I need to find the new places and new things to do here that I love...Quote:
Originally Posted by Birdie
Also I like to know what is where around me. I take a lot of side trips on the way home from things, to see what is down this road and that.
Birdie, did you just move?
And what kind of birds do you like?
I like mourning doves and chickadees...
Wow, this is interesting, Ann. I like canning, and unless you are canning veggies or meat, its really easy. Well, fruit is easy. Fermenting sounds intimidating to me. But I admire you doing it. I should learn that someday. It sounds healthy and I feel like I should know how to "do food", so, I should know the elements of fermentation. I should overcome nervousness I have toward trying that. Someday! Not now though. I am so behind with stuff after the move at the moment...Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
I dabble in making homemade bread and I tried cultivating my own yeast. It was really cool. I just used 1 cup of water to 1 cup of flour and let it ferment for a few days. It smelled really horrid at first as the bacteria colonized first, then as the yeast took over it developed a nice yeasty smell. I kept the culture alive for a few weeks, but I wasn't able to get a successful loaf out of it because it took so long to get the timing right with my work schedule. I plan on starting again once my schedule balances out.Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
Before you want to make a loaf, you have to first feed the starter about eight hours before you want to bake, then again a 2-4 hours before. Then the yeast is as excited as ever and that's when you put them to work ;)
Did you make a dough starter or a liquid starter?
I'm trying a dough starter, wild ferment. So far I keep forgetting to feed it at night. That has me nervous as I'm not quite sure what I'm breeding from allowing something to grow only to die and maybe get eaten by something undesireable. i really need to do more research into how not to grow bad yeast/bacteria/whatever. But thanks for the reply as it's a reminder for me to go feed it. It's at a point now, too, where I could maybe use some of what I have to remove tomorrow. So I might try making a couple of pancakes or such from it, I'll figure that out tomorrow morning.Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimmers
Mostly I first just wanted to see if I could even maintain it. And obviously I'm having a problem that I have to figure out a solution to.
For the other stuff, the strawberry flavored ginger-soda is ready, but I'm kinda nervous about trying it, lol.
Same with that plum cider which is now in the fridge. (I don't even eat plums.)
Let me know how it goes when/if you restart a batch? And how you worked out your schedule around it. Please. :D
I think i read somewhere that you have multiple cats, or did. If so, I wouldn't recommend fermenting unless you keep a very clean house and don't have hairdander/hair flying around when you sweep/vacuum. I wouldn't be doing this if we still had all the animals we had.Quote:
Originally Posted by Eliza Thomason
As for intimidating, remember when you first learned how to can fruit. You had to learn precautions to take, what to look out for, etc. Similar thing with fermenting. Canning intimidates me. I fear not doing it right and thus breeding something that will kill me. I fear exploding jars. And I just don't have enough food at once to be worth the effort, heh.
And fwiw, I AM nervous, very much so. But I chose things that were easy and carried less risks. For example, the plum cider's risks are that it might taste bad, or might have generated some alcohol. The cabbage I might have to scoop off the top, and it might taste bad. BUT, if the cabbage winds up tasting not so yummy, i can dehydrate it for a salty crunchy snack. Or even grind that up into a cabbage-seasoned salt. It's flexible.
The sourdough and the soda starter are probably the most complicated things I'm trying. And even then it's just add flour and water and mix, twice a day. And add sugar and finely chopped ginger to water and mix, once a day. Cover each with a fine-weave cloth and set apart from each other.
But doing a vegetable salt brine is significantly easier and safer. And it's forgiving of errors.
I'm just still nervous at imagined possibilities of what could go wrong, :lol:
Sure thing :)Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
Good luck! It is really cool, especially growing a wild starter. What is so neat is that your bread will taste unique to your own area as it has its own unique species of yeast and bacteria that create a unique flavor. I only wish there was more diversity in flour though.
In regards to bad bacteria, I've read that you won't have to worry too much about bad bacteria once your starter outcompetes the bacteria in the culture in the early stages. As long as the starter maintains the same yeasty, yet slightly sour smell, you'll know that it's healthy. But after that, if you notice any changes, like it becoming more rancid, that's a good sign your yeast have died and the starter is being taken over. Then I would just toss it and start over.
It's rumored that in France, some families have had the same starter kept alive for over a hundred years! Imagine that. It would be an interesting family heirloom :)
The author od Wild Fermentation, Katz I think is his last name...Quote:
Originally Posted by Jimmers
He says he's been given starters from all over the world, but after a while they all started to taste the same. His kitchen environment took over, hehehe.
I often wonder what led so many different peoples to set their watery dough out, and then to feed it.
And how traveling to new lands, carrying a little taste of home, only to have it alter in taste, must have been like. "You're making it wrong, this doesn't taste like how MY [country] mother made bread."
I am Delta and this thread is really boring but maybe I am.
OK I will contribute.
I like to work. I work a lot. And if I don't work I relax.
What about you guys?
BTW I'm not taking the piss, I just work a lot and I like doing it. So is this good or am I missing Ne to spice it up?
I have not moved yet; but I am preparing to again. This time I hope to be there for more than a year;Quote:
Originally Posted by Eliza Thomason
ideally four or five years before even considering moving again. The last few years I have been moving
around a lot. I moved to Seattle and love it here and while I do love it, I realized I never made this
place my home just like I wasn’t able to do with Dallas and the other places I lived. I am hoping this
place I am moving to at the end of the month will embody the feeling of home for me. I want to make
it my home.
I think part of the reason that I haven’t been able to feel at home the last few years is because I do not
have things. By things I mean furniture and knick knacks. I keep a very sparse home with the bare
minimum. I don’t have people over so I have no sofa, no chairs, no dining table, etc… I have a bed a
couple of desks a couple of book shelves, two desk chairs and one end table. I also have a shoe rack
and a storage closet as where I am currently living did not come with a closet and I am a dress person
(the horror, I know!).
I really want to buy a sofa. I look at them online all the time. I have quite particular taste when it comes
to interior design aesthetics. I really want to feel like where I am living at next is my home. While it isn’t
a location I would have chosen for myself the timing feels right. I am excited to paint my walls and cultivate
a home, plant a garden and stop lugging around potted plants every year to year and a half.
I think for me the feeling of home is both physical as well as mental. I am ready to plant roots but I haven’t in
Seattle. I am not in love with where I live. I don’t feel like it is mine and it doesn’t look like it is mine. The walls
are buttercream yellow which is a shade I would never choose to put on my walls.
I have this mental image of how I want my home to look. While I haven’t selected a house to rent yet, I amQuote:
(Hydranga is Birdie!) Well I just moved! I can say that I need to unpack and surround myself with my things and the all the things need to have a place before I feel really at home. Its been almost two months now and I get those pictures up in just the right place pretty fast. I cannot really be at peace til I do. I spent a lot of time picturing in my mind beforehand where things were to go.
confident that will be able to establish a feeling of home in almost any house as long as it is more of an
open space with a rather large “living” room.
I want to sew my own curtains as well. I really hate blinds and dislike most fabric curtains that are sold inQuote:
I have sewn curtains and have more fabric to sew (which I will do as soon as I find the papers I need for new CT license!) That helps a lot.
stores. I also feel like it is way more cost efficient to sew your own if you already own a sewing machine.
Where I am moving to next has a population of less than 100k. When I read this I was taken aback; I findQuote:
Like other life changes, it starts with enthusiasm and postiveness. Sometime after there is a sense of disillusionment coupled with negativism when the drawbacks show themselves. Since I knew to expect that I just accepted it. [It was not a big one for this move as I do feel at home with my husband here, in his home he did so much work on. It feels right. The drawback here is while its stunningly beautiful - the kind of beauty I love best - woods, pines, oaks, birches sassafras, ferns and many rock outcroppings and streams and little lakes - it is much like the mountains I love - but it is more populated. The mountains I love are forest preserve and less populated. Also I found myself missing certain places at home. However, I need to find the new places and new things to do here that I love...
it hard to fit in with people when the numbers are lower, though this is more than likely just a mental thing
on my part. The more people there are the more likely I will be able to make friends, etc… I much prefer
living in really busy places with beautiful scenery around. I like just being around people, not necessarily
interacting, but us all just living our lives alongside one another. There is just something really nice about
that I think.
I love learning new areas! I love jogging and getting to learn my surroundings. I also really hate gps’s so IQuote:
Also I like to know what is where around me. I take a lot of side trips on the way home from things, to see what is down this road and that.
like moving to a near area and getting so acquainted with it that I am able to no longer use my gps. Taking
side roads is a good idea to really learn what is around.
One of my favourite things about moving is getting to learn the people and the surroundings and the
restaurants. The signature that I have chosen “everything fascinates me but nothing holds me” is incredibly
true for myself. I love learning about things and then moving on; hence my moving around so much and my
inability to have lasting relationships with others.
I like most birds. In particular I like flamingoes, indigo macaws, and African grey parrots.Quote:
And what kind of birds do you like? I like mourning doves and chickadees...
I work pretty hard, I feel, but become bored doing the same task over and over, but end up staying out of guilt and dedication. Only when I feel my core values are neglected or trampled on will I quit in haste or to prove the point that I won't tolerate such transgressions :/Quote:
Originally Posted by Words
How important is it for you to have your values respected at work Words?
@Jimmers
My sourdough starter was smelling like glue, so I did some research and found this: http://www.thefreshloaf.com/node/109...olution-part-2
The first part (she links to it) gives the background story.
This second part goes into detail about the different phases and which bacteria are growing in each phase. A way of bypassing the early smelly bacteria is to use pineapple juice to quickly lower the ph. The phases are based on the ph gradually lowering until yeast awakens from its dormancy. Oh, and that we aren't capturing yeast, that it's already in the flour, just in a dormant state until the right ph level. But there's more available yeast when using whole wheat or rye flour for the first few days.
I found her article quite interesting. I thought you might too. At least something to keep in mind for when you do another starter.
as time goes by, contexts change.
even if you watch a special or highlight from the 1970s, you think "wow that was over 40 years ago" - whether you were alive or not to experience it directly. even the present can be that way, when it comes to the context of the moment, or the significance attached to it - a person, an event, a place, a situation. There is some sort of a relationship between how much there is a comprehension to the context and significance of a present situation, and how those same situations or moments have significance over time. It's a strange process of both neutralizing and acceptance, and greater empathy.
human beings put a great deal of effort into reassuring themselves that something or another has particular significance - even beyond biological survival matters such as personal survival or procreation.
the nature of this given significance changes, to a degree.
but so, too, does how much 'it matters'. a lot of things don't really matter, most things even. but some are worthy enough to be considered important, even though their transience is there. subconsciously this happens often, and even consciously there is still an element of choosing, of prioritizing. maybe just what fades over time is the facade, the arbitrary significance is realized for what it is.
but you hav this time, and this body, this form. its quite a beautiful thing, and its shared with others, either of the same bodily forms or not. Even as the body fades, and as dreams or visions or wants fade, change, or - or you realize you won't have the time or circumstance for them to come full on - even then there is an acceptance or understanding . There's a sort of forgiveness , not of 'ignorance' but of just understanding what was seen or couldn't have been seen.
The justifications become more unnecessary as the context grows, as perspective stands.
I always thought the phrase 'time heals all wounds' was trite or weak, or even verifiably false. I see it more as, over time, you realize people are just trying to live, like you were, like you are.
I also never liked the phrase "those who don't know speak, and those who know don't speak"
But I've begun to feel that way more so, in some ways.
Not in the way when i was younger, when i tried to be cool or aloof - a counter to trying to demonstrate or prove knowledge. either to others or trying to prove t myself that i knew, that i could understand, that i could make sense of it.
but now it's more...
it's less complicated
when people do things, there isn't a tension in analysis between what they did, how it appeared, how i feel, how they felt, what the context was, whatt the form was - vs the spiritual or internal situations. i tall just is what it is
there's an earnestness about it .
there's a curious sense of how when you stop trying to protect or ratoinalize yourself, or what you feel, then you actually become totally without need for protection , or justification - at least not in tose old ways. It's funny how when it doesn't matter, when the context hs become so vast and wholesome, it's just a pleasant conversation, of asking and sharing and telling andlistening.
There is a peace in it.
but this world is not a peaceful one. predominanltly
after a time , though, even that doesn't matter. the context in that sense is totally irrelevant.
ironically this has been called faith
This morning we got a call from R's mom to say R's father is saying he just can't do anything today and that he wants to go to the hospital. She used a tone of voice that suggested that it was nothing serious and that it was all psychological rather than anything physically wrong.
So we get to their house, and his father is standing at the top of the stairs, trying to get down, obviously in pain and fearful of making the attempt without support. She's still treating this like it's a waste of time and money, and telling him that if he would just think positive, then he'd be better. Of course, she's totally ignoring that he's going through chemotherapy and just finished one of the sessions, and that he's got a filter in him because of problems with blood clots and his leg has swollen up since the most recent symptoms began, and that some of his medications recently changed as well, etc etc.
I wont cover the whole story, but another thing I noticed was that when the receptionist was asking what meds he was taking, they hadn't a clue. While we were waiting for the triage nurse I suggested that maybe consider putting together a list of meds and keeping them in both their wallets for emergency situations like this. She kept poopooing the idea, saying that it should just all be in the drs' computers, so she didn't need it. I reminded her that they've been to different hospitals, different clinics, and he sees different drs for different things. Having an updated list with them would make things easier for everyone. Especially if they ever have to call 911 for an ambulance. Still, she refused to consider the idea. (R had to walk away bcuz he was so irked by her response.)
Sure enough, the triage nurse asked for a list of meds, and the dr asked for a list of meds. The dr suggested they make a list, still she refused to consider it.
The other thing that irked me was when each hospital staff asked what was happening. R's dad was barely able to breathe, and was trying not to panic. Which meant only R's mom knew what had been going on for the past few days. But she couldn't tell them anything. Not what he had been complaining about, worrying about, saying was happening, nothing. A complete blank.
I kept thinking, how can you not be paying attention to what's happening to the person you claim you love? How can you ignore these complaints and his symptoms knowing full well that he's having health issues? Oy, and then she also refuses to follow the precautionary measures for chemo sessions. Not to keep him safe, nor to keep herself safe.
I don't get it...how can people NOT want to get a fuller idea of what all might be going on and/or involved? How can they NOT want to solve things like symptoms of compromised health??
Ann, I'm sorry to hear about R's father's difficulties. :hug:
People get really wacky when dealing with health problems. It sounds like R's mother is in classic denial, which reminds me of the Kubler-Ross model.
I would think so, normally, but this is a consistent theme from this woman. Granted, I don't think she's very bright/intelligent. I had thought maybe it was an age related mental health issue, but R says she's been like this even when they were kids.Quote:
Originally Posted by April
----
I did forget to add another part to our morning. R eats really early in the mornings. For me he'll wait til about 8 before he starts cooking on the weekends, since i usually dont eat til 10:30 or more. When she called, we were prepping the food to be cooked. So he didnt get to eat, and was already hungry. After we got his dad there, and they figured out what tests they needed to do, we said we were going home so R could eat. His dad was ok with it. His mom couldn't figure out why we wanted to go eat breakfast. SHE doesn't eat breakfast, and SHE had had her coffee, so R can't be THAT hungry. Even as we left, we could hear her complaining about R and I going home to eat. Even though we had made it clear that we would be right back afterwards. Somehow she was being victimized by it, and wanted everyone to know about it. Grrrr.
----
Edited hours later to add:
Just got back from spending more time with them at the hospital. The father says she's been fighting with him, about his symptoms, his wanting to go to the dr/hospital, etc. Part of the fighting and resistance comes from her thinking that drs make their patience sick so they can get more money....such as him not getting sick until he retires (not recognizing that his health issues took years to develop, and their willfull risky lifestyle such as smoking (lung clots and possible cancer lumps), drinking (failing liver with cancerous spots), and eating habits (very few fresh foods, mostly canned or boxed foods)). She is convinced that he went in for one thing (i forgot, maybe arthritis?) which the drs turned into cancer. And look, proof, the chemo is making him sicker.
Part of the fighting is probably also related to the Kubler-Ross model.
She gets mad when the drs look at me as they are explaining what's happening and what to do. The first time I went as a support member, when he got the diagnosis, she got mad too. I was the only one taking notes, asking questions, and verifying my understandings. I knew they were both overwhelmed, so this was a way I could help. But when it came time to explain to them what the drs said and offered, she shut me down and refused to listen. She wouldn't let him talk to me either. And then told her daughter I was trying to kill him.
Anyways, this time he listened to me. They had ignored the cautions and possible side effects. He'd had 4 sessions of chemo without probs, even though he had gradually been getting weaker. So they expected it would always be so breezy. The recent 5th session brought on nausea, vomiting, changes in eating (which changes how the meds work), etc. I had to remind them that this was the stuff the dr had been warning about. And the list of precautionary measures he'd given them, that they had been ignoring. He finally understands what he's about to face, and one of the reasons they call it "a battle with cancer".
If I hadn't been there, they wouldn't have even thought to mention the blood clotting problem he's also been dealing with. The man's leg has swollen up twice its normal size, and they didn't even think to mention it to the dr. Turns out the clots are back and were part of why he couldn't breathe well. She had even gotten mad at me for mentioning them. But if I hadn't, they wouldnt have done the ultrasounds and wouldn't have adjusted his meds for that, etc.
Anyways, I'm not sure what suddenly changed her attitude toward my presence there. Maybe because her daughter wasn't going to come and help this time? But she wanted me to go into the store with her to get food for him...he's on a liquid diet for a few days. She accepted my recommendations of soup/broth brands (made from whole foods with no additives). But that was maybe because it had more flavors he could have. She accepted the low sodium options bcuz of his blood pressure. And the jello suggestion so he could feel something a little more solid in his mouth. (Dr had listed jello as an option.) She admitted that she didn't know what foods/flavors he liked, but listened to him when I asked him. We settled on what he didn't like as our guideline, lol. And while she was unhappy about paying $30 for 4 days of food for him, she was happy it wasn't $100 like she thought it would be.
Anyways. It ended well relationship wise.
But i fear for him and what he's about to face. Everyone knows now that she can't take care of him, and soon he'll struggle to care for himself. I asked if the dr had offered caregiving services, he said yes, and might ask about that.
I've used that same website for research :)Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
I was mistaken about it only taking a few days for my wild yeast to colonize, it was well over a week before I had a healthy starter. Forgive my poor recollection.
Ugh, she sounds infuriating. Like deluding herself is just a way of life.Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
My grandfather (who I lived with growing up, so he's more like my father) is currently going through chemotherapy. It's really overwhelming for the whole family, so I know a bit of what you're experiencing, I think.
R's parents are truly fortunate to have a wise and caring person on their team! :love:
You are significantly closer to your grandfather than I am to R's parents. I have the benefit of emotional distance. May he do well on it. And may he have plenty of emotional and physical support from his loved ones.Quote:
Originally Posted by April
Wow, I was reading what you wrote about this situation and feeling so frustrated for all. But then I got to this last update, and I am so happy for you! I will pray for R and his Dad, and also your MIL to continue in her more mellow state. She reminds me of my own mother (now hardly herself with Alzheimer's) who could be quite stubborn and closed to any suggestions or input and quite dismissing of good, needed advice. And, when everyone knew she was wrong on a thing and tried to reason with her she would be completely undeterred, and dig in her heels and absolutely not budge. My brothers and I would just shrug and give up; this was her and how she was. Subject would be closed because there was no use pursuing it. But over time I began to see it was like a mood, because then she could suddenly turn and be accepting of direction.But her refusals were so intense that it scared everyone off. It controlled people. But you persisted, and you broke through. Good for you, Ann. I will pray for your continued success. And you are really blessing your R - its hard to try a different tact with a loved one when the pattern has been the same for years. Your are blessing his Dad, too. It must be wonderful to have someone see what you are facing.Quote:
Originally Posted by anndelise
@anndelise, I just wanted to say, I think my naturapath would approve of that fermenting thing you do (Its actually the first time I have heard of it!). It probably the smartest way to add to our diet what we all need.
This is not going to sound very scientific to you, but I just take what my naturapath tells me to take. I trust him and his expertise, and most importantly I feel totally great and my complaints are solved when I follow what he tells me. Therefore I have only asked very basics about what he tells me to take. (I am always thinking some other day I will ask more). Recently I asked him about the enzymes I take, what it really is, since that's always been on my list of what I am to take. He said its like a big vat of partially sort-of digested - he might have said fermented - food, then it is dehydrated. (Dehydrating I have tried! I've dehydrated homemade venison jerky, onions, and garlic with a borrowed dehydrator).
Here is the enzymes I take. Also on that page are prozymes, which he used to have me taking along with the enzymes, but not currently. My husband takes the prozymes now as well as enzymes and so does my son (my son agreed to try Wil's particular recommends for him and is actually still taking them because he feels good on them.:content:).
I do really want to try fermenting some time. Its now on my list of what I have to try someday, before long!
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[I'm a bit overwhelmed right now. I have 4 companies coming to give me duct-cleaning estimates, 4 to give me furnace estimates, we had the cable guy fixing the disfunctioning cable today for two hours, and FIVE gas trucks here most of the day repairing a leak in their pipe into our house, and an appointment tomorrow to negotiate a payment schedule for a huge past electric bill (you don't heat with electric space heaters in the northeast) and am scurrying to get papers together for that. And forms in the mail and more forms to put in the mail to get my identification papers in order... However, after reading what your R's father is going through, what have I got to complain about? Really. Thanks for perspective.]
@anndelise So sorry about this. I am glad for R that he has you.
If anything it would be negligence.Quote:
Originally Posted by William
She does care about him, and need him. She'd never be able to care for herself.
She doesn't like drs, and she's not so great in the thinking department. She refuses to allow internet in their home, says it is the work of the devil. (R's dad almost had an online affair.) She thinks the drs are making him sick so they can make money off him. She has a difficult time accepting new information, and in making changes. She just wants him to NOT be sick. And if he believes he's not sick, then he won't be sick. Period.
An example: the dr said he needed physical therapy because he was losing so much muscle and had too low of protein in his blood tests. She cant/wont drive, so said that he's not going to another dr. The dr said the PT people could come to their house, and maybe help them set up the home to make his pathways easier to traverse. She said no way, no one was coming into HER home. I spent three hours with her as she said no way was he going to another dr, and i said then the PT people can come to their place and save them that travel/weather stress. Then she would say no way was anyone coming to her home. So i said then she would have to drive him to his PT appt. He needed these appointments, and we had to find a way to make it work for him. But she couldn't accept that those were her only two options. I mean, literally...her brain couldn't process that this was something that HAD to happen. We spent three friggin hours running the same conversation cycle. (She constantly repeats stuff. I think it is part of her processing attempts. Like a broken record until something powerful enough jars it off it's endless repetitive track.)
I had done an update post but deleted it because i was so frustrated after dealing with her another 7 hours.
But one of the updates was that the dr and nurse had to call in the social services lady to observe what was happening with the wife. She recommended that the wife see a neuropsychologist. But R says she's always been like that. (She is his mother.)
I feel bad for her. Her world is falling apart, in chaos, and she doesn't know what to do. And she lacks education and understanding to make informed opinions. And she lacks the reasoning capacity to consider new information. We all watch her struggle.
Ugh, it's such a mess. But the drs had him stay in the hospital over the weekend. So that helped ease everyone's stress for a bit.
Sorry for the ramble. Believe it or not, i deleted a bunch of it. *sigh*
@anndelise @William I am watching this happen with a friend's parents. The wife is so distrustful of doctors, and so convinced that she knows what is best. She is putting her husband (who was in poor health) at risk, and also refused treatment for the stroke she was having. She is highly educated, and was very successful in her line of work. But she is completely pigheaded about healthcare and practicioners. Thanks to that attitude, she and her husband are both bedridden and dependant on others for care.
@StridingStrider - I'm digging your anime hair. For real, it's wicked cool!
Also, I really love all my deltas. <3 :hug:
Aw, shucks.Quote:
Originally Posted by William
I'm dreading it.Quote:
Originally Posted by applejacks
I started making Lasagna today. Cooked hot Italian sausage and ground beef, drained, added to sauce, sauteed plenty onion added it to sauce, peeled and crushed a ton of garlic, a ton, and sauteed that just enough, added to sauce with basil, oregano and diced tomatoes, let it simmer; house smelled so good. Sliced and sauteed a ton of mushrooms (and added the juices to the sauce) and set aside in their own bowl for layering. All in fridge now and in the morning I will slice up mozzarella cheese and mix Parmesan in with the ricotta (after I squeeze the ricotta through cheesecloth so the I don't end up with runny lasagna). There is plenty of sauce so some will go on the side (too much sauce also makes runny lasagna so better to serve some on side). Then cook the noodles and layer it all. I REALLY want to add fresh spinach, but my husband is not a fan. Maybe on one end...
I am so happy to make lasagna again, which I used to make a lot when my son was young, before divorce. After, a lot of homemaking things had to be let go because there so little time for extra flourishes that make homemaking so nice. Just time for basic cooking, shopping, laundry and the really necessary housecleaning and its all you can do to keep up with that and you cannot do it well. At least I coudl not. a and laundry. And that is how it is for so many Moms these days.
I wish I had had the time to do so many of the things I am doing here at my SLIs house, which he is enjoying. His daughter comes for lunch every day (she works nearby so I have it hot when she comes in) and she is enjoying it, too. Also her Dad did not have time for extras when she was growing up. He did the best he could, but a lot of things have to be let go when you single parent. Today she said, "I love coming to my parents house for lunch!" That was really sweet of her. Of course I am not her parent; and she has a good mother who loves her, but I think she said it as a peace offering, as it was a rough start for us when I unexpectedly started dating her father. I love homemaking and that's for her too since she is family. And I love that my SLI loves it.
If this recipe works out the way I hope, I will repeat it again when my son comes home for Christmas, as he only has dim memories of the times I made lasagna before.
Recently he requested I make my poppy seed bread (really cake) at Christmas. I am so glad to have a request. I don't consider it one of my best recipes, but its tasty and easy. It was my simple holiday replacement for all the fussy cookies I used to make when I was able to stay home when he was young.
Tomorrow, hopefully the 5 windows we ordered will arrive and my husband will start installing. The living room here has 100 year old windows (they are just very basic windows, nothing special) which are near impossible to clean with the storms, and they are a mess to look through and are in really terrible shape to boot. Four of them will go in here. The other in the basement stairwell, my new pantry. It will be nice to have clean views and no drafts!
Last week was spent refinishing the playscape (whatever you call the wood towers with slides, swings). The wood was gray with not a hint of stain, but once stained it was clear what a good job my SLI did when he built it, perfectly level of course. Dear husband helped me with the whole thing, including pinning and measuring for the big lined custom tent toppers we designed. He helped me remove the rocker swing so I could paint spray paint the seat black so that I can paint flowers on it to match those on the tent liner we designed to go over it.
This week together we worked on lined drapes for the guest room. We work so great together! I man the sewing machine but he helps me measure, cut, sew, pin and problem solve. We finished today. However, I am not happy with the results. My fault, it was my vision, but the velvet drapes are too heavy for that room and I need to change something...
However I am putting that off, and tomorrow will start painting flowers on the rocker seat, and I love painting.
I am so happy to be involved in these home projects!