Saturday, December 30, 2023
Saturday 9
Friday, December 29, 2023
Friday Mish-Mash
No one has become ill since Christmas, when we had an accidental exposure to the Covid virus. We have been following the CDC recommendations, which are: if exposed to Covid, mask for 10 days, and on the 5th day, take a Covid test. If negative, continue to mask (but you can stop worrying - they don't say that, but I inferred it) until the 10-day period is over.
My husband, my mother-in-law, and I all took at-home Covid tests this morning, and we were all negative. None of us have had any symptoms. Well, I always have sinus drainage and nasal issues, so it's not easy to tell with me sometimes, but I'd not experienced anything out of the ordinary. We have no plans to go anywhere until next week, so I think we're good. Hopefully, I am not speaking out too soon.
We haven't taken down the tree yet. I never know when to take it down. Usually, I take it down when I tire of it. Sometimes that is before New Year's Day, sometimes not. I know there is folk lore about when to take the tree down, but I don't pay attention to that. I've done it all sorts of ways and never noticed a change in my luck for good or ill.
There are still hundreds, if not thousands, of starlings flying about. They are not congregating at the bird feeder, so I don't know what is going on. They all rise en masse, flutter about for a half-second, and land again. It's like one big hive mind of birds milling about in the front yard. They are also quite noisy. It's a bit unnerving to see so many flitting about, covering up the fields, and filling the trees. When the flock flies over the house, it sounds like a little plane.
Cold is seeping in as the temperatures drop. We have a slight chance of snow. I am not expecting that to happen, but one never knows. We could wake in the morning to a world covered in white stuff. Or maybe it will only rain.
A new year brings changes, I hope. I just never know if they are for good or ill.
Thursday, December 28, 2023
Thursday Thirteen #840
We are winding up another year, so I thought I'd take a look back and see what kind of stuff I was up to in the last 12 months.
1. I read and/or listened to 63 books. They ranged from classics like Catch-22, by Joseph Heller, and Tarzan of the Apes, by Edgar Rice Burroughs (which was actually very good), to books by Janet Evanovich, Debbie Macomber, and Louise Penny, and ranged in genre from fantasy to mystery to self-help to memoir.
2. I washed at least 720 loads of laundry. To only be two people we go through many clothes. This is because we live on a farm and my husband in particular can change clothes three times a day. The cow doody has to be washed off.
3. I cooked at least 365 meals, although I suspect it was a larger number. Usually I don't fix breakfast, but I do fix lunch and supper. However, I only counted one meal a day. Sometimes my hubby makes his own sandwich.
4. I edited one book for someone, and it was published in October.
5. I wrote and published 42 articles. I also wrote 330 blog posts. Not quite one a day, but close.
6. I returned to physical therapy for a couple of weeks to work on a chronic pain issue.
7. I began playing music once a week (give or take) with my father and a friend of his.
8. I made the bed 365 times. I stripped the linens and replaced them 52 times.
9. I swallowed approximately 24,000 pills (not all at once, of course). I take 9 different prescription drugs, some of them multiple times a day, plus a lot of vitamins. (I had no idea it was that many until I started adding them up.)
10. I lost six pounds and kept it off.
11. I walked approximately 1.16 million steps during the year, and that's at an estimate of 3,200 steps a day, which is about what I averaged when I was using a Fitbit before it died. Some of you walked 10 million steps or more.
12. I spent over 1,000 hours playing video games. (One of my new year's goals is to stop that.)
13. I answered approximately 1,400 spam phone calls on the landline. I wouldn't answer them except we have businesses to run, and some calls come in on that number.
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Wednesday, December 27, 2023
Hundreds of Birds
Tuesday, December 26, 2023
So, This Was Christmas
We officially now have what I refer to as "old people's" Christmas. The children are grown, leaving only us older folks to gather around. The younger crowd is off doing their own thing, more or less.
So this was our "old people's" Christmas -
| My stepmother and stepsister. |
| My father. |
| My husband (left) and my father. |
| My mother-in-law (left), stepmother, and stepsister. |
| I think my stepsister is giving me the eye while I snap photos. |
| My mother-in-law. |
| My brother's girlfriend and my niece. My niece is not an old person, she is in college but was visiting her dad and came over with him. |
| At dark, I noticed my tree reflecting in the patio door. |
| My brother gave me a Lord of the Rings puzzle. |
| He also gave me a Royal Mint collector's coin that features Tolkien. |
Monday, December 25, 2023
Sunday, December 24, 2023
Sunday Stealing
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
Saturday, December 23, 2023
Saturday 9: Happy Holidays
Thursday, December 21, 2023
Thursday Thirteen
1. On the first day of Christmas, I tried not to cry. The Christmas tree was too much for me by myself. I hated asking the husband for help.
2. On the second day of Christmas, I wrote out my list. I have no idea what to buy for gifts.
3. On the third day of Christmas, I set out to shop. Thank goodness for my little laptop.
4. On the fourth day of Christmas, I sat down to write my cards. I found my messages to folks were hard to write.
5. On the fifth day of Christmas, UPS rolled in with gifts. I wondered if anyone would like the things I picked.
6. On the sixth day of Christmas, I started looking for the tape, because a new pack cost $6.88.
7. On the seventh day of Christmas, I couldn't find my special recipes. I printed off a few I found online.
8. On the eighth day of Christmas, I found my recipe. I was relieved and I could go and make penuche.
9. On the ninth day of Christmas, I made a slab of fudge. I put in the freezer and hoped it would be good.
10. On the tenth day of Christmas, I watched Rudolph, the Red Nosed Reindeer. This time I did not fall asleep.
11. On the eleventh day of Christmas, I found a fruit cake for my guy. I also bought him old fashioned custard, which he likes.
12. On the twelfth day of Christmas, I played carols with my dad, and when I came home, I was kind of mad.
13. On the thirteenth day of Christmas, I said, "That's enough," and I sat down to drink a cup of ... something.
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Monday, December 18, 2023
Sunday, December 17, 2023
Sunday Stealing - Christmas

I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.
Saturday, December 16, 2023
Saturday 9: The Christmas Blues
Thursday, December 14, 2023
Thursday Thirteen
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Tuesday, December 12, 2023
Bucks Battle It Out!
Sunday, December 10, 2023
Sunday Stealing
I encourage you to visit other participants in Sunday Stealing posts and leave a comment. Cheers to all us thieves who love memes, however we come by them.








