Friday, August 16, 2013

YABBA DABBA DO ANY EXCUSE WILL DO:))

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TWO FINE HORSES WITH A KEEN SENSE OF CURIOSITY WATCH ME THROUGH AN OLD WOODEN RAIL FENCE

It’s that time of year again to re-new license stickers.  Paperwork had arrived a few weeks ago so figured that would be a good enough excuse for Pheebs & I to head out & get that taken care of this morning.  Filled out the forms & it was off to the license bureau in Goderich we went toot sweet.  Quick stop at Walmart for a few things & then off to the tag office.  No line ups & I was the only one there.  Needless to say I had 3 clerks falling over each other trying to get to the counter first just to give themselves something to do.  One Ford, one Jeep, one Hyundai Santa Fe, & one Honda motorcycle = $288.  Yeouch!!

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MEN & MACHINES STILL HARD AT WORK IN THE GODERICH HARBOR BUILDING A NEW WATER BREAK WALL

Some readers will be proud of Pheebs & I this morning.  We skipped both McDonald’s & Tim Hortons.  No breakfast paddy, no carrot muffin & no coffee.  We didn’t however get out of town quite Scott free though.  We did blow threw ‘SUBWAY’ & picked us up a 6” Tuna sub & headed off down to the north harbor to eat it.  And we got a whole lot smarter this time too by not getting any sub sauce on our lettuce, tomato, green peppers, & onion sub.  (no onions for Pheebs)  No sub sauce meant no drippy mess all over the place.  Of course with no coffee or muffin both of us had to spend the rest of our morning driving around with Tuna breath.  Not nice!!

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THIS WAS OUR VIEW WHILE EATING OUR TUNA SUB THIS MORNING…BOW OF A BIG LAKE FREIGHTER WITH THIS SEASONS BUSY GRAIN ELEVATORS IN THE BACKGROUND

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AHEAD OF US THE SIFTO SALT MINE WITH A LINE OF TRAIN CARS WAITING TO BE LOADED WITH ROCK SALT

Reason for the Walmart stop was to pick up some fish oil vitamins that reader’s had suggested.  Turns out Kelly already had some of those CO Q10’s left so started them this morning as well.  I will also pick up some B12 shortly.  I know there are as many views on all this as Carter has liver pills but I try to keep an open mind in this area.  I have to have some belief in what my Doctor tells me & I have to have some belief in what readers & others tell me.  If somebody told me a handful of Jube-Jubes every day would bring my cholesterol down I for sure would not believe that.   Nurse Practitioner wants me back in for another blood test in 8 weeks.  I will stay on the Crestor for now as well as a few other things reader’s recommended.  And as noted, I have already made an effort today to skip our 2 routine fast food joints.  I must admit, my breakfast paddy, muffin & coffee habit did certainly escalate this summer.  I am no stranger to bad eating habits & addictions & well know how fast bad eating routines can quickly get out of hand.  Do I consider myself a big junk food eater?  No I do not, but I do have my times.  And if you heard a big sigh of relief pass over the land earlier this morning it was just me double checking my ‘natural’ peanut butter jar & seeing the words….’no cholesterol.’

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<<< A SURE SIGN AUTUMN IS ON IT’S WAY…NO I DIDN’T PICK ANY OFF THE TREE OR THE GROUND…DIDN’T WANT TO GET MYSELF INTO ANOTHER LEMONGATE FIASCO

Finishing up our ‘no mess’ Tuna sub this morning Pheebs & I headed out of town for the tranquility of the countryside.  No hurry to rush home so we took one of our long winding scenic routes enjoying yet another beautiful pre-Autumn weather day.  I think we hovered somewhere around the 72F mark & for me that is a perfect daytime temperature. 

Question a couple nights ago about how Kelly is doing & do we have any results from her biopsy yet.  She’s doing fine & the biopsy site is looking better with less swelling & just a bit of bruising left.  We will find out the results of the biopsy on August 27th when we travel to Stratford for a meeting with Kelly’s specialist, Dr. Haffner.  And JOOL, yes I have enjoyed music by the Browns for years.  Have those 3 songs you mentioned in my music library.  MargieAnne, I have been checking out those links too…………thanks.

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ACCIDENTALLY CAUGHT MY DRIVER’S SIDE MIRROR IN THIS PHOTO… BOTTOM RIGHT

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LOOKS LIKE THIS OLD WINDMILL HAS ABOUT HAD THE BISCUIT MIKE & HOW FAST MOTHER NATURE RECLAIMS HERSELF

Kelly put in a call to our insurance company this morning to see how much our travel insurance is going to be for 6 months traveling in the States this winter.  As expected, the rates are way up plus they won’t even cover her for heart, lungs, or liver problems now.  Still, her rate will be $1,138 for 6 months.  My rate went down because I am past the penalty period for my kidney stone procedure but then it went up because I am past 65 now & a year older than last year.  My rate comes in at the same rate as Kelly.  That’s another $1,138.  That totals us out at $2,276 for Stateside health insurance this winter.  As Charlie Brown would say, “Good Grief”:((    

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WE EVEN MANAGED OURSELVES A LITTLE STOP AT THE PORT ALBERT BEACH TODAY…A FAVORITE SPOT FOR SMELT FISHERMAN

It's been a difficult summer both mentally & physically as evidenced by the number of times I have had to take myself for a drive in the countryside. Have probably taken more country tours this summer than the two or three summers before combined. For the moment it is the only way I have to appease my restless nature. Just cannot handle sitting around the house doing nothing all day. It's not so much not having things to do as it is not having the interest to do things. Of course that is one of the classic signs of a depressive state. While Kelly is content to spend time at home reading for hours on end I do not have that luxury. Seems I am always wanting to go somewhere, see something, do something. It is why our winter travels are always happier times for me & our stay-home lifestyle during the summer here in Bayfield is such a long grind until we are on the road going somewhere again.  I’m guessing most folks find a happy medium somewhere between our two extremes.

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AND OF COURSE WHAT IS A DAY WITHOUT A DRIVE THROUGH MENNONITE COUNTRY

It's always nice to get home from the South West in the Spring, but it's only good for about a month for me before my restlessness kicks back in. Just as some folks will not understand my restless Spirit, I on the same hand will never understand folks who say they never get bored with anything. How is that possible. Same-same everyday. It's the same mystery to me when I hear people say, "if I could live my life over again I wouldn't change a thing". How is that possible. How is it those folks have lived such totally perfect lives. Life's full of little mysteries isn't it. Well, at least for me it is............................:))

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JUST LOVE THE FREEDOM OF BEING ABLE TO GET OUT & GO SOMEWHERE…………………………:))

GROANER’S CORNER:((  A man without a woman is bachelor while a woman without a man is a genius.  And did you know most stress is caused by 3 things:  Money, family, & family with no money!!  And only on a cruise ship will you pay hundreds of dollars a day to sleep in a closet…………………….

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- Tourists see the world, travelers experience it.
- Home is where your pet is:))
- "If having a soul means being able to feel
love and loyalty and gratitude, then animals
are better off than a lot of humans."
(James Herriot)
- The pessimist complains about the wind; the optimist expects it to change; the realist adjusts the sails -William Arthur Ward
- The only thing better than right now will someday be the memories of right now...AL.
- It is not so much having nothing to do as it is not having the interest to do something....AL.

18 comments:

  1. Be gentle with the fish oil until you find out if you digest it well. The doc put me on three large capsules a day and a week later I was in the emergency room with a stomach full of fish oil. It seems that my body was one of many that takes a long time to digest the fish oil.

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  2. Lots of this can be handled by diet...That's what we have found...I am scheduled for an echo stress test on the 24th...sheesh...just let me get back in the Hiker and I will be fine!

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  3. We're getting restless too. Don't plan on being snowbirds anytime soon, but we sure are anxious to get out and spend some time on the coast. Thinking about supplements and such, it might be wise to try only one or two things at a time - otherwise how will you know what's helping and what isn't? Can't go wrong passing the McDonald's though...good for you!!

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  4. Wow, your insurance is double ours,we go with a big deductable and we don't take any prescription meds.,so lucky! Good luck with your diet changes it's
    bound to get easier over time.

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  5. Thanks for accepting my two bits worth. I always feel a bit shy about talking about the health and nutrition blogs etc I visit. I am now 75 and still on the weight loss mission which began New Year 2012. So far I've lost over 70 pounds, about 30 more to go, and feel healthier than in years. The main change was cutting out wheat which I have discovered makes me quite unwell these days. My husband joined me and at 77 is looking very fit except for some kind of problem with the blood flow in one leg. This too has prompted me to go on another learning curve. he sees a specialist on Monday.

    I have become very fond of you and Kelly over the last few years as I've followed your blog. Glad to hear Kelly is recovering from the liver biopsy. I didn't want to say anything negative but I watched for news with trepidation. My Dad had one not long before he died, (from cancer), way back in the 70s and it was a horrendous experience.

    Take care you two.

    Blessings

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  6. Good start on skipping the junk food . My cholesterol is a genetic thing so diet alone would not get it down. I did not want to be a part of making big business richer so that is when I switched to Natural medicine. Same with arthritis on both counts plus it irritated my stomach. My Doc pitches a fit because I wont take them but has to agree with the numbers and the fact that I get around better today than I did 10 years ago.
    Good luck with what ever you do cause a guy has gotta do what a guy has gotta do.

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  7. I can't watch shows like Dr Oz. If I tried to keep up with all the things to do and eat and all the things not to do I would go crazy. I'm much better at doing nothing. It's a good thing I don't have to take medicine because I have trouble remembering to take the vitamin my eye doctor wants me to take. My doctor would like for me to take the medicine for osteoporosis. I absolutely refuse to take a medicine that the side affect(for me) is migraines and possible loss of jaw bone. Or cause one of the large bones in my leg to break.

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  8. that is quite the hefty cost for your medical coverage! geesh!
    re-license stickers?..only $288 for four vehicles?? do tell, what you are talking about?
    our insurance costs are well over $2000 for one vehicle here in BC?

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  9. Seeing the season starting to change has me wondering why I am staying in Anchorage until late November.
    I was able to never get bored as a kid, but now it happens sometimes. Most days I can read a book or tinker with something and just be happy as possible. Then some days I have to drive somewhere just to see something I have not seen. Given a chance to relive life knowing what I know now, I would do a lot of different things. But I am happy with the way things turned out for us.

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  10. Thats why we enjoy the fulltime rv lifestyle, we always have somewhere else to go, staying one place would have me climbing the walls too.
    To bad you can't get a few camping trips in Winnie the Bago around the country side just for a change of pace, maybe some new places and new faces.

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  11. Some folks do a good job of being in denial when it comes to their health. If we could all be in our 20s, I'm sure there would be no need to change what we shove in our pie holes.
    Cutting out the constant prepared food is a good way to go.
    We're on the hunt for some fish oil. Took a look the other day and there were so many choices I froze. My wife wants the "expensive" kind that is nicely flavored, but the last bottle we got ended up not getting used up before the expiry date, and got pitched.
    Throwing out twenty bucks worth of fish oil doesn't work for me.
    We'll see how it goes.
    I did the sticker ordering thing on line the last time. It was easy peasy but hey, if there's NOBODY at the bureau? We never get that here.

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  12. hi if Kellys part US citizen then why would she not be eligble for some or part of US med care if she worked and lived in the US at any time is she not intitled
    i know the IRS is going after lots of US / CN citizens that have not paid taxes to the US IRS even so there living and working in CN for most of there lives
    joy your day

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  13. One of the first questions that I was asked about 1 1/2 years ago when I had a flash attack of psoriatic arthritis was did I also have muscle pain. When I said yes my PA told me to quit taking my Simvastatin immediately and she then prescribed 3X1000mg fish oil capsules daily. A year later my cholesterol levels were exactly the same as they had been while taking the Simvastatin.
    I believe that avoiding ALL fast foods and losing weight is probably far better for your health than ANY statin drug. The side effects are just as bad, or worse, than the possibility of a heart attack they have not proved to prevent.

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  14. $288 for FOUR vehicles--sorry Al, you can't complain about that! Those same licenses in Montana would have cost probably $1000 or more! Michael's cholesterol was 226 the last time he had it checked. The other day when he visited the doctor it was 171. No meds at all, nothing, just diet changes. We have significantly reduced his red meat consumption, we eat almost no processed foods, and we eat "meatless" a few times a week. It worked and we are thrilled--now I just hope it works for me too when I get my cholesterol checked!! :))

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  15. Good luck on your diet changes, I know how hard that is to do. My 62 yr friend just lost 35 pounds over 8 mos and lowered his cholesterol from 225 to 155 just by changing his diet and adding walking to his lifestyle. I am a junk food junkie at work but rarely buy that stuff for home usage but I know I need to drop it all and exercise 30 minutes per day and that will take care of the supplements. Good Luck, you are off to a great start on your first day of driving by the "drive thru".

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  16. Congratulations on a good start towards the downslide of your weight. I hope the Cholesterol will follow suit as it should. Good for you.

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  17. There is good fish oil and bad fish oil. Walmart falls into the latter category. You get what you pay for. I had sent you the link to the high end ( only place you can get it in the US ) last spring.

    Regardless, good luck with your efforts.

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