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Post by Phalon on Nov 3, 2018 6:28:42 GMT -6
As nice as the weather was for Halloween, the following day was pretty danged cold. I was wishing at work that I had put on long-johns - I was freezing! Yesterday was supposed to be a bit warmer - and it was; I was comfortable with tights on under my jeans.
I'm now among those with a regular Monday through Friday work schedule! The garden center is closed for the season...except when the boss lady comes in to do paperwork, turns on the "open" sign, then leaves when she's done....and doesn't turn off the sign. It drives me nuts! The rest of the retail staff is gone for the season, the landscape crews are still busy installing landscapes, and doing fall clean-ups at clients' gardens, so I'm often the only one on the property - busy moving plants on trailers from the retail area to the "back forty" where it's all over-wintered. It's not an easy task, and is not a quick process. I'll often drive back up to retail after unloading a trailer, and find cars in the parking lot, people milling about outside or in the store, wondering where the staff is - this has been how it's been for years. Urgh. Thankful for the opportunity to stay on after we officially close though....even though being officially closed doesn't seem to mean we're actually closed!
It rained overnight, and is supposed to get to almost 50 degrees today - though it's not yet 40 degrees, and everything is still cold and wet. Hoping to get a ton of stuff done in the yard today - my list is a mile long, and it's supposed to rain tomorrow.
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Post by stepper on Nov 3, 2018 15:47:48 GMT -6
I thought the same of Hubs when I came home one day from work last week to find him beating the side of the garage with a fly-swatter. I'm sure I had a 'WTF?' look on my face. "Stinkbugs", he said matter-of-factly. I remember reading that there was a problem across the entire Northern tier with stinkbugs. I suspect with the cooler weather that problem is temporarily resolved, but I wouldn't want to be stuck with having to swat them at all. Just how stinky are they?
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Post by Phalon on Nov 4, 2018 9:09:20 GMT -6
Hhmmmm...we wondered the same thing. Maybe they have to be squashed in large numbers to be truly stinky, because none of us noticed an odor even though there were plenty squashed inside the house, but there would be just one here, or one there - mostly they stuck to gathering on the siding outside. This is an invasive species of stink bug, bigger than the kind I remember seeing on occasion in Michigan before this year. Apparently they smell like cilantro....or death: www.npr.org/2018/03/07/591681150/a-look-at-just-how-invasive-the-brown-marmorated-stink-bug-is
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Post by stepper on Nov 4, 2018 19:03:02 GMT -6
Don't you grow cilantro in your garden?
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Post by moonglum on Nov 5, 2018 1:21:50 GMT -6
At 6.30am this morning my weather station read 11C. Looks like it's going to be another mild day. The house is quiet, apart from our youngest daughter getting ready for work. She's a security officer at Stansted Airport and she has to be in early this week. The dogs are asleep, Ruby is on the end of the couch, reclining on a pile of cushions like some diminutive Cleopatra. Dexter is asleep in his favorite place, at the top of the stairs with his head hanging over the edge. What a hectic life they lead!
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Post by Phalon on Nov 6, 2018 5:43:23 GMT -6
No, I grow a lot of parsley, and use that as a substitute for cilantro. I know they taste nothing alike, but that is the point - I dislike cilantro; parsley I like. To me, cilantro tastes like soap.
Actually, despite a few days of frost, the parsley still looks great - I used some last night in beef stroganoff. I should get out there and cut it all back to freeze inside before it freezes outside.
Ah, the life of a pampered pet!
It's been very wet here the last couple of days - rain off and on, and little sun except for maybe a half an hour yesterday afternoon, which felt glorious while it lasted. The leaves came down all at once - that excessive leaf drop they were talking about a couple of weeks ago. It's extremely windy this morning. Wonder if the leaves are dry enough to blow away...and where they'll blow to? Most likely the ravine, which will make more work than if they stayed in place!
Ah, well...I haven't done a ton of raking this fall yet. Looks like I might get my chance.
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Post by moonglum on Nov 7, 2018 2:36:16 GMT -6
Rain, rain and more rain. According to the weather reports, we are in for a lot of rain now. It's still warm, 12C when I got up this morning. I had one of those weird dreams last night. I was looking out one of the back bedroom windows at the next door neighbours garden which was under water and flooded, but our garden was dug lower than theirs and bone dry. Strange. I remember my mum saying 'don't eat cheese before you go to bed, you'll have bad dreams'.
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Post by Phalon on Nov 7, 2018 6:05:12 GMT -6
Rain here too - but not so much warm, and it's still very windy. Glad I got out early yesterday morning to vote; by the time the work day was done I was a cold, wet, muddy and very tired mess, and was not going anywhere. Took a hot shower as soon as I walked in the door, put on my pajamas, and just chilled for the rest the evening. Didn't seem so weird to have pajamas on by 7pm; with the time change in effect, it was already dark!
Edited to add - snow is in the forecast for Friday and Saturday! And there's still so much I have to get done in the gardens (and at work). The rush is officially on!
And did you eat cheese before your weird dream?
I always say a variation of that; I can't remember if I heard it somewhere, or if it's from personal experience - but eating (anything) before bed leads to weird dreams.
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Post by moonglum on Nov 7, 2018 9:35:23 GMT -6
No, I didn't. Honest mum.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 7, 2018 23:13:58 GMT -6
Friday & Saturday nights will be in the mid 20sF. Next week, Tuesday night will be 19F. And then it will jump back up into the 70sF. (No that isn't on my weather app, but that's just the way it seems like it goes around here.)
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Post by Phalon on Nov 8, 2018 6:02:44 GMT -6
The 70s - wow! No such luck here - the 10 day forecast has highs in the 30s, with some days in the 40s. Snow or rain most every day.
Not quite ready for that yet!
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Post by Phalon on Nov 9, 2018 6:50:57 GMT -6
We've got snow globe snow - giant fluffy flakes falling straight down. Everything is covered in white, even the leaves that still remain on the trees - and there are a lot of them; there are more trees and shrubbery in my yard that are still leaf covered than there are that are bare. It's a beautiful mix - snow-covered bare branches and golden-and-white trees. Fascinatingly weird this morning on the back porch, watching snow and leaves fall at the same time. I kind of got lost in the moment until the warmth left my empty coffee cup, and my fingers grew too cold to be comfortable.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 10, 2018 18:53:48 GMT -6
It's 28F right now. Whoa! There are a lot of freezing nights this week. Looks like Winter may show up weeks ahead of schedule.
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Post by moonglum on Nov 12, 2018 1:36:10 GMT -6
11C at 7.00am this morning and a dry night for a change, it's rained solidly the last few nights coming down like stair-rods. I haven't looked at a long-range weather forecast for a while because they are so often wrong.
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Post by stepper on Nov 12, 2018 14:25:26 GMT -6
Interesting you should mention 11c - that's our current temp and the high for today. From here on a cold front is moving in - I can hear the wind picking up even now. We're going from 52 down to 33 (0.5C), and the wind chill will be 17 (-8.3C). It's not unheard of for our area, but it's early for it. Then again it's been an odd year weather wise. Really hot and dry, to surprisingly wet, and now it's getting cool early for our area. I'm not complaining about the current weather though. I'm not a big fan of the hot and dry thing. The weather guessers are saying it'll be snowing just a bit NW of here, but it's not expected to reach us, and then it'll warm back up to the 50s again. The cold front will move the rain out of the area, so that's done for now.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 13, 2018 4:12:38 GMT -6
It’s snowing! I wonder if it will still be there a few hours from now?
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Post by moonglum on Nov 13, 2018 9:58:23 GMT -6
It is freezing, It is sub-zero and everything is freezing up. That's just in the fridge. The fridge/freezer has decided it wants to be two freezers. all liquids, semi-solids have frozen solid and the dvd player in the bedroom has decided it does not want to be a dvd player anymore. So a trip to the store, £500 and a new dvd player later (the new fridge/freezer arrives on Thursday) we are almost back in business. Why is it appliances always fail just before Xmas? Oh, and the weather.....so-so.
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Post by Phalon on Nov 13, 2018 23:33:01 GMT -6
Sorry for your appliance woes. Isn't that always the case?! Whether it's appliances, car repairs, or another unexpected but necessary expense - never fun, but especially it's a drag just before the holidays!
Snowy, blowing, freezing temperatures here today; the high wasn't even 30, and with the wind-chill it was 15 degrees. I was soooo glad the boss said to stay home today - I was not looking forward to spending all day outside in that kind of weather. Had a semi-productive day at home getting things ready for next week - but there is so much left to do!!! I can't believe Thanksgiving is next week already, and the day after, I have to make all the greenery arrangements for the Holiday Market on Saturday. I'm way behind schedule where I'm comfortable. The LX and the Boyfriend (and I'm assuming the Hellions) are coming in for Thanksgiving - they're both working in Detroit now, though still not permanently. I wish for them it was - it's where they want to be.
And I still haven't had the chance to finish cleaning up the gardens; I'm afraid all my glazed pots still sitting outside with now-frozen annuals will crack with the changing temperatures. Urgh, I hope not - I'd hate to lose them all, or any of them, really.
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Post by moonglum on Nov 13, 2018 23:59:49 GMT -6
I was up at 5.00am this morning. Temp was 11C. Couldn't sleep. You know when some thought pops into your head and it just won't go away. One of those silly thoughts like, will the new fridge/freezer fit down the hallway and into the kitchen. At 1.00am I wanted to get downstairs and measure the doorways. Vox calmly suggested that if I did, she'd shoot me. So 5.00am found me up, with a tape measure in hand, measuring spaces. Decided to force myself to forget it and do some writing.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 14, 2018 1:40:38 GMT -6
There was some snow that did stick around all day. Supposed to get a lot of snow on Thursday. Right now it's 25F (-3C), but feels like 15F (-9C). Oops. Just checked my weather app, and now we're expected to get snow Wednesday & Thursday. 50% in the afternoon, and 90% in the evening. 3 to 5 inches. (I should have gone to the store today. Hopefully the snow won't stick around too long.) The snow may start around 4pm CST, and continue into the morning hours on Thursday.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 14, 2018 16:32:58 GMT -6
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Post by Phalon on Nov 15, 2018 12:44:14 GMT -6
Yes, all the time! You either lay there thinking about it, unable to sleep, or get up and do something about it.
Hope you got in some good writing time, Moonglum.
Was there any accumulation, Joxie? It started snowing here again this morning - off and on quite heavy, but it's just steady small flakes now. We've got a couple of inches that fell today.
Whew! I'm done. With the crews still working off the property, there was really nothing left that I could do by myself, so I asked the boss if there was anything he had for me to do that I hadn't thought of, and if not, if I could be done for the season. Anything that remains to be done, he said, the crews will take care of next week - they should be done with their landscaping by the end of this week.
I'm always thankful for the time I stay on after retail closes for the season, but after yesterday morning, I decided it was time. My hands were so cold after just an hour they were numb - I literally couldn't feel my fingertips. I came inside for about 10 minutes to warm up, and weirdly just my the fingertips on my right hand had this burning, tingling ache that hurt enough that it gave me a sick-to-my-stomach feeling. It warmed up enough during the afternoon though, that it was quite comfortable (with my layers, and layers, and layers of clothing).
Now I can concentrate on getting ready for Thanksgiving and the Holiday Market.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 15, 2018 13:37:35 GMT -6
Yesterday the amount changed to 2 to 3 inches.
http://instagram.com/p/BqNlE9pFy6-
This is from the front porch. Yesterday’s video was taken from my bathroom window. It is the back of the house, which faces north. I opened the window and stuck the phone outside. Because of that, you hear the leaves and wind. Inside the house I could hear the TV. Gabrielle was yelling Xena’s name. Two episodes played yesterday: Crusader and Past Imperfect. So, it was either the end of the first one, or the beginning of the second one. I’ve missed that show airing on TV. (El Rey Network) Enjoying watching it M-F. Taking notes for when I blog it for Q. Got other things to work on before I work on that though.
Supposed to get back up into the 50s soon, so the snow doesn’t have long to stick around.
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Post by Phalon on Nov 16, 2018 7:44:16 GMT -6
I didn't know that you blogged - or that you did it for Sista Q. Sounds coolio. Is there a link?
We got more snow since I posted yesterday, but it got above freezing overnight, so it's very slushy out there. It started snowing again, but is supposed to do the same today, and tomorrow - snow each day, then the temperature climbing to above freezing. Next week, according to the forecast, every day will be in the high 30s and into the 40s. There's still hope I can get my pots emptied and into the shed before winter really hits!
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 16, 2018 15:08:51 GMT -6
I’m not blogging just yet. Q would like the perspective of someone who viewed X&G as just friends the first go round, and then watches the series anew after having seen every episode. So far, I’m still not seeing them as a couple. And I’m trying to take notes on how I’m drawing that conclusion.
I have other projects I want to finish before starting my blog, but I’m still jotting down anything that comes to me as I rewatch the series on El Rey. Then I’ll have something to start with once I’m ready to blog. Two factors that lead me to see X&G as just friends are:
1) Both Lucy and Renee have stated that they played around with the subtext here and there, but for the most part they played it straight ... as friends. And this is what I pick up on as I watch them.
2) It wasn’t maintext. I’m not one who enjoys ‘are they/aren’t they’ or ‘will they/won’t they.’ There are many shows, before and after Xena, that I did not/do not play that game. Not even when the couples got together in the very last episode. I had no joyful/gleeful attitude towards it. I ignore any and all ‘hints,’ and the aftermath of the final episode. —— Put them together, or don’t put them together. And if the show doesn’t put them together, then they are NOT a couple. (And, of course, this is my view. Everyone has the right to their own view and their own tastes in story development. — I recently watched a video where someone stated that they didn’t want the new Magnum & Higgins getting together until the series finale. So now I know there are people who like this technique. I’m just not one of them. For me, it’s maintext or bust.)
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 16, 2018 18:53:02 GMT -6
Today was nice. It was in the 50sF. Funny how warm it feels now, compared to a few weeks ago. I walked to the mailbox. I have been doing as little walking as possible. A Google search convinces me that I have Plantar Fasciitis. And I found a number of videos on YouTube that I've been usingto try and relieve the pain, and eventually get rid of it forever. My playlist is:
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 17, 2018 16:50:23 GMT -6
It got into the 60sF today. The sun always cooks the house when it isn’t cold enough outside to prevent my home from becoming an Easy Bake Oven. It would be nice, if not for my hot flashes. It would also be nice if the temps were warming up, and not cooling down.
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Post by Phalon on Nov 18, 2018 8:00:42 GMT -6
Sometimes I did, sometimes I didn't - I thought it was obvious in some episodes that the subtext was maintext. It wasn't a focus for me as I watched the show, and I didn't realize there was Shipper/Subber debate until I joined the O2 board after the show had ended.
Three of my co-workers have had or have plantar fasciitis. We're on our feet all day, and most days we walk several miles throughout the course of the day. The floor of the store is concrete, outside is a mix of pavement, gravel, and grassy uneven surfaces - it all adds up to being very hard on our feet. The boss lady ended up having surgery to correct it a few years ago, another co-worker got custom orthopedic inserts made for her shoes, and just this fall, a third co-worker was in physical therapy 3 times a week for the problem. Hope the exercises you're doing at home work for you.
Yesterday, the sky could not seem to make up its mind on what it wanted to dump down upon us. It started off raining, then changed to an ice/snow mix, then snow, back to ice, and finished off the day with rain.
There's nothing on the ground now. I'm debating on whether to go today or tomorrow to cut boughs and berries to make the table arrangements for the market coming up (I really can't get over it's this coming weekend!!!). The weather neither day looks good - cold and drippy. I should just bite the bullet and get it done today, though after that mix of precipitation yesterday, it'll be a muddy mess. At least there's no wind right now. Ok, that settles it - today it is; I just talked myself into it.
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Post by Mini Mia on Nov 18, 2018 21:56:44 GMT -6
I can see the times they 'played' with the subtext, but it wasn't enough to make it maintext, IMHO. They either are, or they aren't. And since they only 'toyed' with the subtext, therefore it wasn't/isn't maintext. This isn't about them being a same sex couple. I did this with male/female characters before and after Xena. I just hate shows that play that game until the very last episode. I've seen it done many, many times, and I've learned to just ignore any 'hints' of a possible relationship. I even ignore that Tony & Ziva have a child. Which happened off camera, and Tony only learned of it once the actor was leaving the show. IMHO: Show it or leave it out.
I've no problem with others seeing them as a couple. I've no problem with others seeing Xena & Ares in a relationship. What I have a problem with is those who refuse to let everyone have their own view, or who push their view on everyone. Okay, disclaimer made. (And that will be going on the blog as well. That my view/feelings isn't the last word, and everyone can carry on as they please with their own view.)
The very first time I learned of the subtext was in a TV Guide article. I didn't get internet until 1999. And the fighting over who was right soured me on the fandom. It almost soured me on the show, but I refused to let that happen, I loved the show too much. The blog won't be about which view is the only view that everyone should see, it will be about why I only see them as friends. And I'm doing that because Q wants to understand how others only see a friendship, and if after seeing the whole series their view has changed. How and why, etc. We were going to do that here, with as many who wanted to join in, but sadly this board is pretty much dead, so I'm just going to do this by myself. IIRC, that conversation is in one of our PM discussions. The marathon never got started, though I did post a thread to get it started. No one posted to that thread, or voted, so I didn't bother with the rest of the episodes.
... ... ...
My feet eased up a bit, once I started the stretches, but I had also stopped walking to the mailbox. I drove the car instead. But, on these nice days, I started walking again, and my feet are back to killing me again. My sister has heel spurs on the very back of her heels. I worry that they'll damage the Achilles Tendon. She had surgery on one foot, and had to stay off of her feet for a month. She's refusing to have surgery on the other foot because both feet are still killing her. I've posted the videos on Facebook to share with her in hopes that they can help her feet too.
... ... ...
Most of the highs this week are supposed to be in the 50s & 40sF, low to high. A couple of nights are to be in the 20s & 40s, but most will be in the 30sF.
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Post by Phalon on Nov 19, 2018 6:53:33 GMT -6
That was one of the cool things about the show, I think - that there was something for everyone, whether a person focused on the relationships between the characters, or the action/hero good vs evil aspects. It had very broad appeal. It was one of those things I would have liked to do, but I don't have access to all the episodes, the money to buy them all on DVD, or the time to watch them all and thoughtfully comment on them in any kind of timely manner (remember how long our book group discussions on "To Kill a Mockingbird" took?) I did a quick drill, and found not walking at all is a very conservative treatment - some walking may even help with the condition as long as it's done the proper way. www.arthritis.org/about-arthritis/where-it-hurts/foot-heel-and-toe-pain/treatment/heel-pain-arthritis.php* * * I did not get out to the nursery yesterday to cut greens yesterday after-all. I had to go to the craft store to get supplies instead, which is an hour and a half drive round-trip, and then stop on the way back at the grocery store to get a few things; I need to do my Thanksgiving dinner shopping today, but there were things we needed that couldn't wait a day (cat food, allergy medication, and coffee. The cat wasn't going to starve; we were out of dry food, but he had plenty of wet food. I could probably deal with another day of sinus pressure. But I cannot go a morning without coffee!). Both places were packed, and it took longer than expected. I'm actually glad I stopped in the grocery store - they were running low on turkeys!!! I got one, but still have to do the main shopping today... and get all the live stuff I need to make the table arrangements. * * * BP and I saw the coolest thing last night; I wish Hubs had been awake to see it, but he had already gone to bed. Actually, I heard it before I saw it. Close to 11pm, I let the dog out, and was sitting on the front porch waiting for her, when I heard this WTF-noise far off, that kept getting closer and closer, very fast. I couldn't figure out what it was - a group of yodelers, a pack of coyotes, teenagers screaming...zombies snarling? It was a very discomforting noise, almost scary, especially when it sounded like it was right around the corner. Then I saw it...and ran back inside to get BP, who was just going to bed before I let out the dog. She met me downstairs, alarmed - "WTF is that?!!!" I took her outside, and we were just time to see an enormous flock of some kind of crane - whooping crane? Sandhill crane? fly over the house. It was a gorgeous sight - 50 or more very large birds that appeared stark-white in the night sky. They kept coming and coming, and finally even after the last one was out of sight, we just stood there, until their eerie sound faded into the darkness.
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