momentarily ruminating ...

Image Source: Pixabay

  There are times (today) when the aging process is a literal pain in my ... knee.

  The arthroscopic surgery I had hoped would end the pain in my left knee has had to be postponed until next year.  The health insurance plan that I have chosen for the past two years (anticipating and successfully banking on good health) because it was the least expensive option, has turned out to be not so much so.  It is a "pay for what you need" plan, and when I had them add the codes for the knee surgery, it was going to cost me an additional $2,500 in payroll deductions over the next 20 weeks.  Plus $850 up front.  Funds I don't have at the ready, and can't afford to lose from my paycheck.  So when open enrollment starts for next year, I will choose a different plan that will better suit my needs.  Not just to get my left knee done, but also my right later when the left has healed since I know favoring the left will irritate the right.  Winters walking on ice were not kind to me.

  I really wish that the US would follow the lead of other countries and make health care more affordable.  For everyone.

  But I think that will be something that won't happen until hell freezes over because the governing bodies that could make a difference always seem to ensure that they won't ever have the need, and thereby don't have a clue what the rest of us endure.

  I'm whining because I'm in a blue funk because of it all.  In pain.  Frustated.  Topping it off, I saw a meme this morning that announced I was older than Google.

  Talk about pouring salt on a wound.

  I'm at an age where more and more people I grew up with are passing away.  I don't recognize any of the popular music artists and actors.  I feel like a stranger in a strange land.

  Mind you, I'm not in any great hurry to join the ones that are no longer here.  But I miss that world I once belonged to, and many of the people that are no longer in this one.  I miss the feeling of being invincible and immortal.

WfW ~ friend or foe?

I am writing with Words for Wednesday, the words for which can be found [link>] on Messy Mimi's Meanderings blog for the month of August.

The goal of WfW is to take given prompts, words, phrases, photos, colors, or music and create a story from them. This week's words and color of the month are in bold italics.

If you visit her blog you can also read and cheer on the other writers participating in this weekly fun.

  Looking at my calendar, it is hard to believe that the month still has just over a week left to it.  As busy as I've been, as tired and sore as I've felt, I could have sworn it was the end of September already.  Which would actually be nice if it was.  The mornings have been foggy, and if the sayings are true, we will be in for a snowy January.

  A fellow employee has been on leave the first few days this week, and thankfully, there has not been the normal chaos.  Although, I have probably jinxed myself now for at least the rest of this day.  She will be back tomorrow.

  I spotted a paw print inside one of our trash cans yesterday, but couldn't decide if it was friend or foe.  Friend being possum.  Maybe even raccoon.  Foe being a skunk.  Thankfully a quick internet search determined it was a possum, but Charlie was still reminded that if he gets "skunked" again (for the third time since I've had him) he may be sleeping outside for a while.

  Regular dog shampoo and water won't get that stink off him, just a crazy concoction of Dawn dish soap, baking soda, and hydrogen peroxide.  And since there is no outside water faucet here, it would be a stink that would fill the house for a while, tho he would go straight into the downstairs bathroom and no further until he was cleaned.  Which would then leave me to get it off me and my clothes.  We would be smelling it for weeks, and it isn't a smell that one easily becomes immune to.

  Christian did see the possum last night, which was a good thing.  Having one in the yard is a plus for all of us, especially Charlie because they love a nightly buffet of ticks, snails, slugs, and other insects that would normally enjoy munching on the plants in the garden.  So they are like having a gardener on duty after hours.  I really hate slugs.

  I am looking forward to September's words with malice prepence, although I know there is yet another week of words for August.  I have a person in mind for the antagonist, someone who uses bullying to gain pelf often with no regard for who is stepped on in the process.  A coxcomb of a misogynist.

weekend bits and bobs ...

I finally picked up my new "after-hours" glasses this morning.  It is the end of an era for turquoise & brown.  Hello, new blue!

I salvaged these from the trash this week.  A little bleach, soap, and water, and I have all kinds of ideas for them.

Including one for this lamp.  I previously shared this vintage find (which I love love love) that is brass and patinaed copper.  Now I'm trying to decide between what type of fabric to use to recover the square shade.  The lamp serves as a nightlight in the entry hall because everyone's shifts are different with some leaving in the dark, and some coming home in the dark.  I kinda didn't want it to be so bright with just a white shade and have scratched off the list the ones I first looked at that were a lighter color. 

Now I'm down to these two fabrics:

This one I like because of all the other interesting little quirky things that make it more than just pineapples.

This one, however, is just gorgeous, and really plays into the patina of the copper.

I overdid things on Saturday and had to put ice on my knee for a bit.  Lucy was worried about me because I don't usually lie down in the middle of the day.  So she kept coming up and giving me headbutts and wondering what was going on.  I just love the green of her eyes.

I've been researching the background of the house to tie in with the original embossed/galvanized tin shingles that were recently replaced.  Pretty fascinating actually, and I will post it sometime.

WfW ~ and other things ...

L-R:  Christian, Aila, May, and Bipin

I am writing with Words for Wednesday, the words for which can be found [link>] on Messy Mimi's Meanderings blog for the month of August.

The goal of WfW is to take given prompts, words, phrases, photos, colors, or music and create a story from them. This week's words and color of the month are in bold italics.

If you visit her blog you can also read and cheer on the other writers participating in this weekly fun.

  I will try to suppress my adoration for these four.  I couldn't have lucked out with better roommates than I got with these ones.

  Most of the time I realize that having roommates or choosing them, can be a frenzied ballet, somewhere between Brahm's Lullaby and Wagner's Ride of the Valkyries.  Somewhere between getting a superhero or someone running from the law with warrants out for their arrest.

   These four have become my partners-in-crime for practical jokes.  Stress-free, pressure-free, no hassles happy to cook AND clean up after themselves. 

   West Virginia is like a treasure map of new experiences and adventures for them.  A quick walk to the bus stop on Main Street and they are soon exploring in Lewisburg.

Not black
deep green
hopefully orange
soon

  Dinners here are a feast, sometimes with homemade spring rolls (not to be confused with egg rolls) and fresh cucumbers from the garden in homemade spicy hot vinegar.

 The full moon rolls around and they keep me centered and not howling at the moon or wanting to rip someone's head off.  I'm on the prowl for garden gnomes to hide under the Great Pumpkin's leaves just for the fun of knowing they are there.

  I could fill a dozen trash cans with the negativity of the past three years here, but a hundred of them couldn't hold the good things that have happened since I arrived.

WfW ~ knee jerks and other kinds

 I am writing with Words for Wednesday, the words for which can be found [link>] on Messy Mimi's Meanderings blog for the month of August.  

The goal of WfW is to take given prompts, words, phrases, photos, colors, or music and create a story from them.  This week's words and color of the month are in bold italics.  

If you visit her blog you can also read and cheer on the other writers participating in this weekly fun. 

*~*~*

Lucy under the upstairs
bookshelf by the reading
nook

  I've mentioned my roommates a few times here and there, and while it is half the number I thought I would be taking on, it is a perfect fit for the house and all of us.  Even Lucy has agreed and she made a public appearance downstairs during dinner last night which was quite a sign of approval from her.

  There will be a future news article in the Washington Post about the man behind the reason I took on roommates ... an elected government official, Governor Jim Justice, who abuses his position of power to bring in international workers for what is essentially indentured slavery for three months to a year at a time.

  He believes that the "opportunity" these "interns" have in being able to put the Greenbrier Resort on their resumes or CVs should pardon his abominable treatment of the interns ~ working them 12-16 hours a day with few breaks if any; 14-20 day work "weeks" with no days off; verbal abuse and sometimes sexual harassment from those in positions of power over the interns.

  The posture of those who have the ability to make a change in the treatment of these interns, or even remotely follow standard human resources or even union employee, guidelines for them is to just turn a blind eye to it.

  Whether it is fear of the Governor's gavel coming down on their heads or indifference and bigotry, I believe their lack of action on behalf of these young interns makes them just as culpable as the Governor.

  My left knee has lately been driving me nuts and I originally attributed it to driving a standard-shift car and moving into a house with stairs.  Unfortunately, that is not the case.  An MRI done on Monday has shown I have a torn ACL and also an anterior horn meniscus root tear.  Fun fun fun.  I'm waiting now for the referral appointment to the orthopedic surgeon to schedule arthroscopic surgery.  

  No more beating around the bush in denial about the pain.  I was supposed to have surgery for a torn meniscus in both knees in December of 2019.  In Wisconsin.  But had no intention of doing crutches on snow and ice for even one day.  Then Covid canceled all surgeries for a while.  I divorced.  Moved.  Got told I was going to die.  Didn't die [and left that doctor high and dry!].

  All in all, the rest of the year looks like it will be a busy one.  The roomies from the Philippines are looking forward to the fall colors of the trees, including the luminous bright reds of the flowering dogwoods in the area.  I'm just looking forward right now to some relief from the heat.

long week end

   It has been quite the week.  I was 99% out of the old house on the 30th, with only my washer and dryer to move.  They were moved on the 1st, and the house was completely cleaned and turned back to the landlord.  I've noticed they have shown it several times since I moved out, and thankfully have swapped out the photos online to ones that don't include my possessions.

  Charlie tried briefly to take over Gracie's window seat, but that didn't last long as he barks too much.  I know he misses being able to survey his kingdom, but I worry he will wake the roommates.

  This was the view one morning from one of the upstairs windows.  The creek that flooded in 2016 is in the foreground and the park beyond is where they shoot off the fireworks for the Dandelion Festival and other events.  

    Dinners are always a feast, sometimes with karaoke beforehand, but always with laughter.

  The weekend will be another busy one.  My goal is to get a room full of my "stuff" unpacked, sorted, purged, put up, put away, and get the house in order so that it doesn't always trigger my issues with moving and clutter chaos.  I'm anticipating four new beds this weekend for three of my roommates, and a potential new roommate addition in the next few weeks.  One of these days I will have to sit down and introduce you to everyone.  We are quite the household of international comedians.  Don't worry, none of us will be able to quit our day jobs!

  I need to get back into a creative outlet ... whether writing or crafting.  There are several projects of both that I need to complete or start and finish for Christmas.  Unfortunately, apart from the writing projects, I'm not sure I know where anything else is right now.

  May your weekend be productively relaxing ....  Ci

WfW ~ blue, pink, or green?

I am writing with Words for Wednesday, the words for which can be found [link>] on Messy Mimi's Meanderings blog for the month of August.  

The goal of WfW is to take given prompts, words, phrases, photos, colors, or music and create a story from them.  This week's words and color of the month are in bold italics.  

If you visit her blog you can also read and cheer on the other writers participating in this weekly fun. 

*~*~*

  I counted out the flatware again for the fifth time.  One more interruption and I was seriously going to lose it on someone.  I didn't care if it was the season to be jolly, I'd had just enough of people coming in and out of the dining room singing "The Twelve Days of Christmas!"  It was becoming harder to resist the temptation to just scream bloody hell at the top of my lungs and start throwing knives and forks at everyone.

  Adding to my stress was the fact that this would be the first-holiday dinner where our mixed families would be combined.  It would also be only the second time I had met my partner's family in 25 years, and the anxiety I was feeling about that fact was just about to make me have a nervous breakdown.

  It was difficult enough to communicate with them given the language barriers that we faced.  Or that they lived more than  13 billion light-years away, and I couldn't just invite them over for dinner once a week.   But when they decided to drop the "little" oh-by-the-way bombshell that we were no longer on the bottom of their food chain but somewhere in the upper middle lower upper of it ... I was more than a little ashamed to admit that I was a tad bit worried about hosting a dinner party for them where I could wind up being on the menu.

  Chills ran up my spine again when I thought of the menu I had planned per my partner's instructions.  I had almost vomited when topping the list of ingredients they wanted was 20 gallons of luminous bright red blood.  Fresh blood too, which had been nearly impossible to find.  Somehow I'd done it, but quite honestly, I wondered once again if getting involved with an HD1 entity was a mistake.

  Finding out that they had been here all along, an early settler who had taken the time to learn our language and assimilate unseen and unnoticed into our society was enough of a shock.  Then learning about the multiple entities within one "organism" was just mindblowing.  I had no idea if they would take offense at me ending our relationship suddenly, but wasn't sure I wanted to find out before I was prepared to go off-world myself to maintain my own covert and front identity.

  The last thing I needed would be to start an intergalactic war between HD1 and Neptune over a dinner invitation and a baby gender reveal party!