Saturday, October 8, 2005
We've bought the new range...
...delivery to happen in a week and a half or so. The only minor argument we had was over the color. I leaned toward black, since black appliances make our tiny kitchen look larger along with the dangerously dark cabinetry. Also, as I discovered with the purchase of black stove element pans some months ago, black looks cleaner when it's not clean than white, bisque or stainless steel stuff. I held my ground and Mom finally gave up, saying, "Well, you're the one who's going to use it."
True.
As usual, Mom was very animated while conducting business. The sales associate understood, though. She looked to be about my age, maybe a little older, and familiar with the circumstances surrounding doing an elderly parent's business while allowing them to feel as though they're doing their business.
Last night, in our first anticipation of using a reliable oven, Mom and I began a very stringent holiday baking list:
Later.
True.
As usual, Mom was very animated while conducting business. The sales associate understood, though. She looked to be about my age, maybe a little older, and familiar with the circumstances surrounding doing an elderly parent's business while allowing them to feel as though they're doing their business.
Last night, in our first anticipation of using a reliable oven, Mom and I began a very stringent holiday baking list:
- Molasses-Ginger Snaps;
- Gingerbread with chile powder;
- German Chocolate Cake Cookies;
- Banana Bread
- Mexican Wedding Cookies
- A few candied fruit fruitcakes from my mother's recipe;
- a few more dried fruit fruitcakes from my recipe;
- Traditional Family Recipe Date Bars;
- Kolachis with dried peach and fig centers;
- Pound Cake to be soaked with Chambord
- Egg Nog Bread;
- Toffee Chocolate Chocolate Chip Cookies;
- Honey Bear Brownies;
- A lemon-oat-streusel bar using lemon curd;
- Some kind of bar using Robertson's Scotch Marmalade and dried cranberries;
- Peanut Butter Cookies;
- Spritz Cookies
- Oatmeal Apricot Cookies.
Later.
I just passed the thousandth indexing...
...am at 1,004.
Today is Optimum Range Buying Day so we're going to buy a range today, probably to be delivered on October 15th.
Stats are caught up.
Yes, I'm letting Mom sleep in. I'll be awakening her shortly. I need her on the phone and aware today.
Later.
Today is Optimum Range Buying Day so we're going to buy a range today, probably to be delivered on October 15th.
Stats are caught up.
Yes, I'm letting Mom sleep in. I'll be awakening her shortly. I need her on the phone and aware today.
Later.
This month is my birthday month, you know. All month.
I will be celebrating the end of my 54th year. I love this time of my life. I hope Mountain Dairy egg nog is being sold around my birthday.
We found another snapshot of Mom that she likes and wants published on the web, which I'll do later. I'll explain the circumstances when I publish it.
We found another snapshot of Mom that she likes and wants published on the web, which I'll do later. I'll explain the circumstances when I publish it.
I've been doing grunt work...
...on the website today, what little of the day I've been up. Mom arose late. I can't remember what time but I know it was after 1100. I arose first around 0645, realized my chance and dashed to the grocery for some staples. Although Mom and I had discussed going on a short shopping spree today I didn't see it happening primarily because I was feeling a little under this beautiful weather.
Sometime after breakfast I laid down "for a half hour", chores not yet having been completed, meaning that my mother's bed, while having been sprayed with white vinegar and wiped down with alcohol, was not made. When I awoke at 1645 Mom was asleep on her plastic sheeted mattress, perfectly comfortable. I felt worse when I awoke than when I laid down, despite having taken two ibuprofen for the body aches I was having prior to napping.
Things went well, though. Apparently Mom didn't have a problem with the idea of sleeping without bedding.
I've got 23 dvds to enter. I alphabetized and catalogued the "new" ones today. I think that'll put us in at about 100 dvds, some of which I intend to trade out for others.
I also tidied the navigation areas on many of the independent pages and attended to the Links sections of various partitions. I haven't used any of the reengineered search engines yet but expect to shortly when I flesh out the movie entries for the dvds.
I haven't yet returned to indexing so I have topped 1,000 entries. That, I'm sure, will occur shortly, though.
I've got stats but I may not enter them until tomorrow. I'm awaiting the finishing of the home made bread machine wheat bread. Fifteen minutes to go before I retire. Good time to clean-up.
Later.
Sometime after breakfast I laid down "for a half hour", chores not yet having been completed, meaning that my mother's bed, while having been sprayed with white vinegar and wiped down with alcohol, was not made. When I awoke at 1645 Mom was asleep on her plastic sheeted mattress, perfectly comfortable. I felt worse when I awoke than when I laid down, despite having taken two ibuprofen for the body aches I was having prior to napping.
Things went well, though. Apparently Mom didn't have a problem with the idea of sleeping without bedding.
I've got 23 dvds to enter. I alphabetized and catalogued the "new" ones today. I think that'll put us in at about 100 dvds, some of which I intend to trade out for others.
I also tidied the navigation areas on many of the independent pages and attended to the Links sections of various partitions. I haven't used any of the reengineered search engines yet but expect to shortly when I flesh out the movie entries for the dvds.
I haven't yet returned to indexing so I have topped 1,000 entries. That, I'm sure, will occur shortly, though.
I've got stats but I may not enter them until tomorrow. I'm awaiting the finishing of the home made bread machine wheat bread. Fifteen minutes to go before I retire. Good time to clean-up.
Later.
Friday, October 7, 2005
All searches are renovated, in place...
...freshly indexed and ready to go. You'll notice that I've observed The Mom & Me Journals Dot Net partitions and set up separate searches for each partition. The right of each search page also functions as a mini-Table of Contents.
I'm a day behind on stats. I might get them in this morning. Mom was up until almost 0030 this morning, although in an up-and-down kind of way. She and I were both pretty inactive yesterday. I attacked the search engine problem with vigor and solved it.
I have not yet reached 1,000 individually indexed items for the Soon (relative term) To Appear Dynamic Table of Contents. I put that aside to restructure the search engines so that I could use them, if necessary, in compiling that index. As well:
This morning while I was out getting a few staples (like Half & Half for my coffee) it occurred to me that I might be having a website related "hot flash" of energy and focus in order to have a halfway decent birthday month this year but not neglect Mom. Mom, too, has been assertive about insisting when she's ready for movement.
We need to purchase a new watch for Mom. The only watches she can successfully wear without magnetizing them are Timex® watches. Strange but true. Anyway, the band on her old one disintegrated a few days ago while going through the wash. The watch is fine but looks battered so we're going to scout out a replacement watch. Walmart has a large selection of Timex watches at a variety of price levels. Going there will involve a burst of intense walkering but I think she's up to it. Today would be a good day weather wise but we also need to do her hair so we may not get around to the trip until tomorrow. I know that doing her hair will involve some extended experimentation since I bought her some new hair ornaments.
We might, with luck, be able to avoid a trip to Costco this weekend. I need to catch up with MCS and I have a side editing project going on which I'd like to be able to make some headway before Sunday. I continue to have the itch to index so I may be passing 1,000 within the next few days.
You might, over the next few days, as I crawl between sites and change Link section navigators to the search engines, encounter a broken link or two. E me about them if you wish, that will help. In the meantime, I expect to get to all the broken links shortly.
Later.
I'm a day behind on stats. I might get them in this morning. Mom was up until almost 0030 this morning, although in an up-and-down kind of way. She and I were both pretty inactive yesterday. I attacked the search engine problem with vigor and solved it.
I have not yet reached 1,000 individually indexed items for the Soon (relative term) To Appear Dynamic Table of Contents. I put that aside to restructure the search engines so that I could use them, if necessary, in compiling that index. As well:
- I'm waaaay behind on cataloguing new movies. I'm not sure but I think we may have over a hundred DVDs now. I shudder to think how our collection will expand if Inside the Actors Studio ever sells their seasons on DVD.
- I know, I know, I'm also waaaay behind on doing anything over at Caring. About Food.. Not a day goes by, lately, but what I don't think of something to record over there. Sometimes I post these thoughts at The Dailies, sometimes here, sometimes not at all.
- I want to very much to finish all three of those apropos books I ordered. I've begun all three of them. I will be reporting back on those. I'm going to try to get free permission to quote from one of the books.
This morning while I was out getting a few staples (like Half & Half for my coffee) it occurred to me that I might be having a website related "hot flash" of energy and focus in order to have a halfway decent birthday month this year but not neglect Mom. Mom, too, has been assertive about insisting when she's ready for movement.
We need to purchase a new watch for Mom. The only watches she can successfully wear without magnetizing them are Timex® watches. Strange but true. Anyway, the band on her old one disintegrated a few days ago while going through the wash. The watch is fine but looks battered so we're going to scout out a replacement watch. Walmart has a large selection of Timex watches at a variety of price levels. Going there will involve a burst of intense walkering but I think she's up to it. Today would be a good day weather wise but we also need to do her hair so we may not get around to the trip until tomorrow. I know that doing her hair will involve some extended experimentation since I bought her some new hair ornaments.
We might, with luck, be able to avoid a trip to Costco this weekend. I need to catch up with MCS and I have a side editing project going on which I'd like to be able to make some headway before Sunday. I continue to have the itch to index so I may be passing 1,000 within the next few days.
You might, over the next few days, as I crawl between sites and change Link section navigators to the search engines, encounter a broken link or two. E me about them if you wish, that will help. In the meantime, I expect to get to all the broken links shortly.
Later.
Thursday, October 6, 2005
I've been caught in a snag of furious indexing.
I will probably reach the one thousandth entry sometime today. I've been spontaneously awakening at very odd hours; my favorite hours, actually: between 0300 and 0400. It's been nice but it's also required that I nap in the afternoon when Mom lays down. That's kind of a drag. I don't like to split my sleep.
I cleaned up all the search portals and expect to be redoing those and setting up a "Search Index" [Good idea, I hope I remember it] with all search pages listed with a brief rundown of what each search partition searches. That index will turn out to be a definitive index for all independent pages throughout The Mom and Me Journals Dot Net compendium of sites.
The Anal Retentive Table of Contents will probably be another month or two along. I decided to continue cataloguing until I am up-to-date. The process of rereading what I wrote remains fascinating. I've deleted a few technical posts where I was confused about how this journaling software time stamped a post. I'm doing a fair amount of editorial clean-up, mostly to do with syntax. I don't think anyone will be able to tell the difference. I've also transferred the spontaneous, infamous Love and All That Shit to the Essaying the Situation partition, where it is in correct time and date line. When I reread that post I realized that it stood alone as an extemporaneous essay.
I will be entering Mom's stats for yesterday soon. I took them only once. She slept a lot. I kidded her that now that she's 88 she needs an extra day to recover from a blast of increased, vigorous movement. She looked at me as if to say, "88!?! You're kidding!"
When she was up she was lively but she didn't spend enough time up and hydrating for me to worry about taking her stats more than once. She had only two meals: Breakfast, at the time about to be posted over at Mom's Daily Tests and Meds; and Dinner, which I'll review but without stats.
As has become a habit again, I gave her a good foot and leg rubdown before she retired last night.
Later, someplace else.
I cleaned up all the search portals and expect to be redoing those and setting up a "Search Index" [Good idea, I hope I remember it] with all search pages listed with a brief rundown of what each search partition searches. That index will turn out to be a definitive index for all independent pages throughout The Mom and Me Journals Dot Net compendium of sites.
The Anal Retentive Table of Contents will probably be another month or two along. I decided to continue cataloguing until I am up-to-date. The process of rereading what I wrote remains fascinating. I've deleted a few technical posts where I was confused about how this journaling software time stamped a post. I'm doing a fair amount of editorial clean-up, mostly to do with syntax. I don't think anyone will be able to tell the difference. I've also transferred the spontaneous, infamous Love and All That Shit to the Essaying the Situation partition, where it is in correct time and date line. When I reread that post I realized that it stood alone as an extemporaneous essay.
I will be entering Mom's stats for yesterday soon. I took them only once. She slept a lot. I kidded her that now that she's 88 she needs an extra day to recover from a blast of increased, vigorous movement. She looked at me as if to say, "88!?! You're kidding!"
When she was up she was lively but she didn't spend enough time up and hydrating for me to worry about taking her stats more than once. She had only two meals: Breakfast, at the time about to be posted over at Mom's Daily Tests and Meds; and Dinner, which I'll review but without stats.
As has become a habit again, I gave her a good foot and leg rubdown before she retired last night.
Later, someplace else.
Tuesday, October 4, 2005
Where was I? Ahh, yes...
...about her time warping the visit from the future to the past.
An Addendum to the above Referred Post: This evening when she awoke from her nap she had a clear memory of the visit having happened "yesterday"; which is to say that she relaxed so well during her nap she reported to me, upon my query while she lingered at the edge of her bed, that she felt, "Great!" as though, "Never better!" was implied.
Today's Mom's Daily Tests & Meds Dinner Stats report covers the evening in more detail. It was low key. She watched TV, I visited TV while I performed those morning and afternoon chores that fell by the wayside while company was here.
Although Mom's monthly blood draw was accomplished on 9/26/05 I haven't gotten around to doing the BP report, glucose report or monthly review for the doctor. I know he knows from the results that she's doing very well and he doesn't need to worry about her. I intend to fax those reports in a day or so, the health review portion of which I'll record here.
As far as I can recall, even with the presence of company, today was no more noteworthy than already noted here and elsewhere: A mellow, good day. Mom talked about going out to eat tomorrow. I think she vaguely remembers that our original plan was to take company out for lunch today. She's been looking forward to this. But with all the sleeping, both hers and mine, and the earlier-than-expected departure of our company ostensibly because of an impending storm but probably because Mom and I either remained asleep or feel asleep on them, the planned lunch-out didn't happen. Mom, now, feels she's owed a dinner out since the one thing she hasn't imagined is that the restaurant was experienced.
I hope our company takes it as a compliment that we relaxed so completely in their presence.
Goodness! Mom's still reading! Ah. Her light just went out. 2240. Good. Think I'll do some more indexing. Did I mention I'm in December of last year? I'm close to 1,000 index items, so far. Don't worry, I've got ideas about how to make a complex Table of Contents relatively simple.
I might, over the next few days or maybe even weeks, be experimenting with CGI script features my domain host offers free. If they can be incorporated simply and easily into the format already established and attract some attention they'll stay. If not, they go.
Later.
An Addendum to the above Referred Post: This evening when she awoke from her nap she had a clear memory of the visit having happened "yesterday"; which is to say that she relaxed so well during her nap she reported to me, upon my query while she lingered at the edge of her bed, that she felt, "Great!" as though, "Never better!" was implied.
Today's Mom's Daily Tests & Meds Dinner Stats report covers the evening in more detail. It was low key. She watched TV, I visited TV while I performed those morning and afternoon chores that fell by the wayside while company was here.
Although Mom's monthly blood draw was accomplished on 9/26/05 I haven't gotten around to doing the BP report, glucose report or monthly review for the doctor. I know he knows from the results that she's doing very well and he doesn't need to worry about her. I intend to fax those reports in a day or so, the health review portion of which I'll record here.
As far as I can recall, even with the presence of company, today was no more noteworthy than already noted here and elsewhere: A mellow, good day. Mom talked about going out to eat tomorrow. I think she vaguely remembers that our original plan was to take company out for lunch today. She's been looking forward to this. But with all the sleeping, both hers and mine, and the earlier-than-expected departure of our company ostensibly because of an impending storm but probably because Mom and I either remained asleep or feel asleep on them, the planned lunch-out didn't happen. Mom, now, feels she's owed a dinner out since the one thing she hasn't imagined is that the restaurant was experienced.
I hope our company takes it as a compliment that we relaxed so completely in their presence.
Goodness! Mom's still reading! Ah. Her light just went out. 2240. Good. Think I'll do some more indexing. Did I mention I'm in December of last year? I'm close to 1,000 index items, so far. Don't worry, I've got ideas about how to make a complex Table of Contents relatively simple.
I might, over the next few days or maybe even weeks, be experimenting with CGI script features my domain host offers free. If they can be incorporated simply and easily into the format already established and attract some attention they'll stay. If not, they go.
Later.
Mom is appears to be recovering from something.
Not incidentally, so am I. In one way or another she and I both slept through portions of our visit with friends. It would have been embarrassing if they weren't our informal family. Most of the tale of our day is told at today's breakfast entry at Mom's Daily Tests & Meds.
Mom is napping, recovering from the little bit of the visit to which she attended awake.
Flowers were offered, fresh home made bread was broken. Bonds were renewed.
Last night something interesting happened that rent my heart a bit. As is my usual policy when we are retiring at the same time, I sent her in to brush her teeth, reminded her that I was going to brush mine in "my bathroom", told her to continue brushing her teeth until I returned to her bathroom. When I was halfway through the two minute timer on my toothbrush I heard her calling me, her voice high and frail, just this side of "shriek". She'd lost track of me halfway through her brushing routine, having been confused by the constant cleaning I did yesterday and the constant reminders of "company tomorrow", each reminder in which she delighted as though it was a fresh announcement of freshly made arrangements.
I answered her immediately and she stuttered through her fear that I had "gone home with the company". Apparently I elaborated so well on who the company was by refreshing her memory of previous visits and her history with these people separate from mine that she experienced the visit before it happened!
Ahhh, reconnaissance coughing. I'll be back...
...later...
Mom is napping, recovering from the little bit of the visit to which she attended awake.
Flowers were offered, fresh home made bread was broken. Bonds were renewed.
Last night something interesting happened that rent my heart a bit. As is my usual policy when we are retiring at the same time, I sent her in to brush her teeth, reminded her that I was going to brush mine in "my bathroom", told her to continue brushing her teeth until I returned to her bathroom. When I was halfway through the two minute timer on my toothbrush I heard her calling me, her voice high and frail, just this side of "shriek". She'd lost track of me halfway through her brushing routine, having been confused by the constant cleaning I did yesterday and the constant reminders of "company tomorrow", each reminder in which she delighted as though it was a fresh announcement of freshly made arrangements.
I answered her immediately and she stuttered through her fear that I had "gone home with the company". Apparently I elaborated so well on who the company was by refreshing her memory of previous visits and her history with these people separate from mine that she experienced the visit before it happened!
Ahhh, reconnaissance coughing. I'll be back...
...later...
Monday, October 3, 2005
No, nothings wrong...
...everything is amazingly fine. I've been spending most of my "free" time working on the index. I'm only about 10 months away from the present. I'm caught up in the story and can't seem to pull myself away so I've been sacrificing report time to indexing time.
I caught up on stats this morning. Catching up reminded me of a few things I want to mention. Mom's been walkering regularly and vigorously for the past few days. On Friday I insisted on a practice session on our driveway. The session seemed to bode ill for redevelopment of her walkering skills. After two laps her calves hurt and her knees became "iffy". I gave her a 200 mg ibuprofen (which I rarely administer) and she went to bed, moving almost not at all for the rest of the day.
On Saturday, though, when I mentioned that I needed to make a "short trip" to Costco to replenish our egg and orange juice supply, much to my surprise she invited herself along.
"Everything I need is going to be at the back end of the warehouse, Mom," I told her. "If you decide you don't want to do that much walkering I'll set you up for people watching at the lunch area at the front of the store."
"Well," she said, "that's an option. I think I'll be okay, though."
She was! She wandered from kiosk to kiosk eating a sample lunch. Insisted on covering all three aisles of Christmas stock. Remained standing through check-out; she usually insists on heading between the registers to sit at the lunch area while I check out. She enjoyed herself immensely and didn't complain about tiredness or pain (I continually checked with her on the state of her legs and back) until we arrived home and she swung around to get out of the car. Then, all she had to report was "a little stiffness." Wasn't interested in any pain medication, although she promptly napped.
When she awoke yesterday morning she was excited and animated about our impending dinner engagement. As is usual during her bathing process, I asked her, "How are your knees? How's your back?"
She answered, with a surprised look, "Fine. Why shouldn't they be?"
I laughed. "You know, Mom, your body has amazing recuperative powers. After months of little to no movement you're back on the road, again. You walkered all over Costco yesterday. I just thought you might be feeling it today."
"Goodness no! I'm fine."
Okay, then. Never mind.
What ever slowed her down for so long has apparently evaporated. I think I'll keep this mother.
We haven't lately done anything in the way of formal exercising, although each day for about a week while she's sitting in her rocker I've been guiding her through some minor flexibility movements, even less than what I described in the last =>Moving =>Mom entry. Maybe doing these loosened up her internal energy pathways, although truthfully, these sessions have been so slight that I didn't think they'd matter, thus I didn't bother to report them. Her general stiffness hasn't seemed to be alleviated by them. Her hours have remained as usual, about half or a bit more of the day spent in sleep. Since Friday, though, she's walkered every day, a prodigious amount for her on Saturday and Sunday and hasn't needed oxygen when sitting.
I'm thrilled. After dinner last night while MPS's family was walking us to our car MPBIL mentioned something about walkering around the house.
"The walker's not handy in the house," I replied, "so we're going to get her a cane."
"That's right," Mom chimed in, with absolutely no protest.
Wow.
So, we're having an active fall, this year. I'll take it. So, apparently, will Mom.
Expect that reporting here will remain occasional until I'm through the entire index inventory. We have a few more visits coming up this month, too, one within the next few days. As well, as long as the woman wants to get out, I'll be taking her with me where ever I go, which involves more time than when she stays home. I keep the stats at Mom's Daily Tests and Meds pretty much up to date and usually include a few words about our day so if you're curious you might check over there.
I caught up on stats this morning. Catching up reminded me of a few things I want to mention. Mom's been walkering regularly and vigorously for the past few days. On Friday I insisted on a practice session on our driveway. The session seemed to bode ill for redevelopment of her walkering skills. After two laps her calves hurt and her knees became "iffy". I gave her a 200 mg ibuprofen (which I rarely administer) and she went to bed, moving almost not at all for the rest of the day.
On Saturday, though, when I mentioned that I needed to make a "short trip" to Costco to replenish our egg and orange juice supply, much to my surprise she invited herself along.
"Everything I need is going to be at the back end of the warehouse, Mom," I told her. "If you decide you don't want to do that much walkering I'll set you up for people watching at the lunch area at the front of the store."
"Well," she said, "that's an option. I think I'll be okay, though."
She was! She wandered from kiosk to kiosk eating a sample lunch. Insisted on covering all three aisles of Christmas stock. Remained standing through check-out; she usually insists on heading between the registers to sit at the lunch area while I check out. She enjoyed herself immensely and didn't complain about tiredness or pain (I continually checked with her on the state of her legs and back) until we arrived home and she swung around to get out of the car. Then, all she had to report was "a little stiffness." Wasn't interested in any pain medication, although she promptly napped.
When she awoke yesterday morning she was excited and animated about our impending dinner engagement. As is usual during her bathing process, I asked her, "How are your knees? How's your back?"
She answered, with a surprised look, "Fine. Why shouldn't they be?"
I laughed. "You know, Mom, your body has amazing recuperative powers. After months of little to no movement you're back on the road, again. You walkered all over Costco yesterday. I just thought you might be feeling it today."
"Goodness no! I'm fine."
Okay, then. Never mind.
What ever slowed her down for so long has apparently evaporated. I think I'll keep this mother.
We haven't lately done anything in the way of formal exercising, although each day for about a week while she's sitting in her rocker I've been guiding her through some minor flexibility movements, even less than what I described in the last =>Moving =>Mom entry. Maybe doing these loosened up her internal energy pathways, although truthfully, these sessions have been so slight that I didn't think they'd matter, thus I didn't bother to report them. Her general stiffness hasn't seemed to be alleviated by them. Her hours have remained as usual, about half or a bit more of the day spent in sleep. Since Friday, though, she's walkered every day, a prodigious amount for her on Saturday and Sunday and hasn't needed oxygen when sitting.
I'm thrilled. After dinner last night while MPS's family was walking us to our car MPBIL mentioned something about walkering around the house.
"The walker's not handy in the house," I replied, "so we're going to get her a cane."
"That's right," Mom chimed in, with absolutely no protest.
Wow.
So, we're having an active fall, this year. I'll take it. So, apparently, will Mom.
Expect that reporting here will remain occasional until I'm through the entire index inventory. We have a few more visits coming up this month, too, one within the next few days. As well, as long as the woman wants to get out, I'll be taking her with me where ever I go, which involves more time than when she stays home. I keep the stats at Mom's Daily Tests and Meds pretty much up to date and usually include a few words about our day so if you're curious you might check over there.
