I just mentioned this to ds, a huge discworld fan. It made our list to try to get to in the 6 days we have left with him here.

I was so sad to read that. Only a year older than me!! He was one of my favorite actors. I loved him in Homicide and in a corny film "Duets". I didn't watch Brooklyn Nine Nine, but the clips I saw of him were so funny.

Congratulations! Persevering through Covid and al the challenges it brought makes this ever more sweet.

We were in Goodlettsville during the tornado for my BIL's Celebration of Life. It was in a golf clubhouse which was mostly windows. We were without power for a couple hours. There were many families there who came for the piano recital of his students and they had planned to leave thought better of being on the road at that time. Since we were in from out of town and not familiar with the larger Nashville area, had no idea were the path was in relation to where we were. I spent much of the time in a hallway by the bathrooms while most of the attendees hung out in that death trap of a room. My super sweet daughter was entertaining her 4 year old cousin by making shadow puppets with the phone flashlight. I am so sad to hear about the death and destruction. Glad to hear that the boardies here are safe.

I feel best with 8 hours sleep, which rarely happens. If I didn't have to get up to pee (maybe 2 am, maybe 5 am), I would naturally do better getting up around 7 am going to be around 10:30 pm. I developed sleep anxiety when K got sick about 10 years ago. Months of suicide watch where I was afraid to sleep seemed to change something in my brain. In the subsequent years before I went back to school when it didn't matter as much what time I got up, I would read in bed to distract myself from all the terrifying thoughts that would only surface once I got in bed Once I had to be up early for school/work, the anxiety changed to worry about not being able to fall asleep and be rested enough for the next day, which ended up being a self-fulfilling prophecy. Reading at night didn't work anymore. If the book was interesting enough to distract me from my thoughts, it was too stimulating. Now I wear sleep headphones (a headband with little speakers) and listen to meditation or sleep hypnosis podcasts. I need something to crowd out those thoughts. Now my alarm goes off at 5:45 am, which I snooze at least once as an act of rebellion. I need to be out the door before 6:30 am to be on time for work. So I typically get between 5 and 7 hours.

I think many of us who have dared to express our concerns about the Israeli government have been accused of anti-Semitism. I know that I had to stop reacting to anything on social media because I have been called out by my Jewish friends and acquaintances and accused of being a hateful human being ... that anything less than 100% support of the Jewish state no matter who is governing or how is antisemitism. So that is what I am reacting to. I don't think this rise in antisemitism is unique to young people. Maybe I'm out of touch with what is happening on college campuses, but I have seen plenty from adults - older adults, who think they have been given carte blanche to express racist and xenophobic views towards anyone not white.

Here is a roasted vegetable soup that I make that my family loves (adapted from an Ina May Garten recipe and something I saw on TikTok.) The prep can be done a day ahead but assembling takes no time at all. INGREDIENTS 1 butternut squash (peeled, seeded and cut into 1-2 inch cubes) 1 lb carrots, peeled and cut into large chunks Celery - several stalks cut into large chunks 1 large onion - peeled and quartered 1 head garlic - separate cloves but leave in the paper skin. (can add sweet potatoes and parsnips, but will need more broth if adding more veggies.) Salt and pepper 2-3 tablespoons olive oil 32 oz broth (vegetable or chicken) 1 15.5 oz can cannelloni beans Directions: Preheat oven to 350 degrees. Peel and cut up vegetables, toss in olive oil and spread out on parchment covered baking sheets in a single layer. Season with salt and pepper. Roast for 45 minutes or so, turning over halfway through with a spatula - until veggies are soft and have some caramelization. Heat up broth. Drain and rinse beans. Squeeze garlic from the skins into a blender or food processor (or use an immersion blender). Add roasted vegetables, beans, and about half the broth. Process or blend until smooth. Add all ingredients (including rest of broth) back into the pot, stir, and season to taste with salt and pepper. Can serve with roasted pumpkin seeds (pepitas), crispy bacon, crusty bread.

Congratulations!!

Mine is the BBB as in Bear Bunny Buster ... a combination of our dog Bear, his fur making "Bear Bunnies" instead of dust bunnies, and a dust buster. And she has googly eyes thanks to my daughter. Bear is afraid of him, so he always leaves the room when we turn it on.

She asked for a good quality sweater that isn't too boring and not in gray, black, beige, or navy. Something with color. I struck out at my old standby, Land's End. Tons of cashmere, but she wants something not quite so high maintenance. I think I found one, but it is in a light blue. I saw some at L L Bean that were surprisingly less stodgy than Land's End, but no Cyber Monday deals. Pretty expensive. I hope they are worth it. Eddie Bauer used to have nice sweaters but now they are all recycled plastic.

I don't remember if I've done this in the past. I'm not very good at keeping resolutions or anything like that. But I like the idea of having a focus. WOTY for 2024: Connect. I feel very disconnected and alone and realize that nothing is going to change unless I make some changes. I need to break out of this cocoon I built around myself to nurse old wounds of mass scale rejection. I need to work on my connections with dh, my children, and family members, and what few friends I have left. And I need to work at making new connections, even if they start out as superficial. POTY for 2024: It's not about me. I think the only to get out of ruminating and being sad is to get out of my own head and to look for ways to make things about other people. Thinking about how others are feeling and doing and asking them. Whether it is family, acquaintances, or my patients (I'm actually pretty good at this last one since I only have them for about an hour or so.)

Thank you all for the kind words and suggestions. The pain is more manageable. I'm down to taking the tramadol at night and ibuprofen during the day. I find that work is less painful than life at home, but I don't have deep couches as work and don't have to get things out of low cabinets. I scanned 9 patients yesterday without much pain. I will look into DDPY again. I had tried it a while ago, but couldn't figure out where to start. I think I am much more able than chair yoga. I had worked on my fitness levels before we went to New Zealand in September because we planned lots of outdoor things. I was working on stairs and limited hills (limited by the fact that we live in one of the flattest parts of the country) and step ups on and off the BOSU ball in all directions. But what I did was not enough. We did some difficult hikes (listed as moderate, but nearly killed me). And even just walking around Wellington and Queenstown was challenging since it is very hilly. Despite all my preparation, we did bite off more than I could chew. But I haven't done much since coming back from New Zealand. I'm gone 12 hours a day, 4 days a week for work. K is going through a really rough patch. Our dog is sundowning. Walking the dog for 45 minutes a day 3- 4 days a week is all I am managing.

@Ausmumof3 I’m so sorry about your dishwasher issue. That sounds like a major annoyance to me. Mine is this corner kitchen cabinet that is mostly inaccessible unless you practically crawl into it. If we weren’t planning to redo our kitchen, I’d be getting this contraption. https://www.homedepot.com/p/Rev-A-Shelf-15-in-Blind-Corner-Cabinet-Pull-Out-Chrome-2-Tier-Wire-Basket-Organizer-with-Soft-Close-Slides-5PSP-15SC-CR/312843725 Finding pie plates and cake takers and other infrequently used items were impossible with my broken rib

My issue isn’t hyper mobility but my arm falls asleep when on my side (and that’s the only way I can sleep. I’m looking into getting this pillow system https://medcline.com/products/shoulder-relief-pillow it’s pretty pricey but it looks like it would take pressure off the nerves that are impinged. If it saves my shoulder and I get more rest, it will be worth every penny.

I'll have to look for a place to join. Since the pandemic, 2 facilities nearme with heated pools closed. I don't have a ton of time to exercise due to commute and long days. But I'm trying to get some stuff in. If I could find a good gentle yoga class that works for people with broken bodies ... most yoga studios around here focus on what I call "athletic competitive yoga." I need an in person class. Since I had covid, I just cannot make myself exercise other than going for a walk and a few things to prevent shoulder injuries at work.

I really like this exercise. It is very helpful in keeping my back and shoulders strong for my job, which has a high risk of musculoskeletal injuries. I had been working on my core as much as I am able - I still have some residual issues from the spinal compression fracture - some positions are painful. But my biggest issue is lack of quad strength - everything you do to strengthen those hurts my knees.

I didn't think about a sexual connotation until you mentioned it. Now I can't get Austin Powers out of my head. 😂

I was doing so well on my holiday prep ... until I wasn't. On Sunday, I hurt my side getting up off the floor after tending to my senior dog in the middle of the night. I was a little off balance and felt a sharp pain in my right side. It hurt most of the night, but ibuprofen got me OK enough to go to work. I was thankful that my clinic job isn't that physical and I got through the next 2 days. This morning, after I walked my dog (a big dog who can sometimes get a little excited to see his "friends") and did some cleaning around the house, the pain in my side kept getting worse. I could barely get up out of a chair and couldn't reach into any lower cabinets for things I needed for Thanksgiving prep. I finally decided to go get it checked out - The X-ray showed I fractured my 11th rib. You know how most people have some space between their ribs and their pelvis? Well, I don't anymore (see below). The weird little twist I did as I was trying to get up off the floor caused my pelvis to put too much pressure on my lower ribs and one fractured. They gave me a shot of Toradol and sent me home with instructions to do some deep breathing, pain patches and tramadol and told me I should rest. The ER doc was supposed to give me a letter for work in case I didn't think I could work on Friday, but that was missing from my discharge packet. A little backstory, which kind of ties into @PeterPan's post about shrinking ... In June 2020, I fell onto my rear end and felt an explosion of pain in my lower back. All I could do was lie in the fetal position on the floor and moan. My husband came up to check on me and, when he touched me, I about bit his head off. I ended up crawling 10 feet to the dog bed and laying there. I probably should have gone in to get it checked out but 1) it was the height of the pandemic and you had to be almost dying to go to the hospital, and 2) I was in so much pain that I couldn't make rational decisions for myself - when my husband asked me what I wanted to do, I just didn't want to move. (He should have insisted, but I had just bitten his head off.) All of this to say that I likely suffered a spinal compression fracture and I lost nearly an inch of height. Which shortened the already small space between my ribs to next to nothing - my 12th rib is at level to or inside the iliac crest (top of the pelvis.) Last year, I had a Dexascan which showed that my osteopenia had not progressed much in a decade since my last one, which is good news. But I will need to work on strengthening my lower body, something I've been neglecting since all the stuff I need to do really really hurt my knees. It was a group effort to get the pies done tonight. I will spend Thanksgiving hopped up on pain meds. Hope you all have a lovely Thanksgiving!

Great news!!

I'm only responsible for bringing 3 pies and cranberry sauce to my sister's about 3 hours away. But I did want my house to be cleaned up and inviting since my daughter and her boyfriend and maybe his family will be coming by this weekend. And I needed to make dinner for today. So, the house is about half cleaned, the veggies for tonight's soup are roasting and the pumpkin for the pies has been cooked and pureed. I need to make the crust for the pies, make the pumpkin pies, peel the apples for the apple pie, make the soup and biscuits for dinner and finish cleaning. But I injured my side this weekend and need to rest. I probably need to go to urgent care to get it looked at, but I need a sous chef to help me finish what I need to do (bending and twisting is so painful.) I hope my husband will be home soon so we can get that done. @regentrude I meant to get my flu and covid shots a couple of weeks ago so that I'd be building immunity before this week, but had to work late and missed my appointment. I have to plan to be out of commission the next day so I can only do it when I don't have to work the next day. Maybe this weekend.

Earlier this month, my BIL passed away from complications of COPD and heart failure. He was an accomplished musician, opening for big names in the 70s, playing piano in bars and clubs as well as teaching piano. He was my kids piano teacher for several years. Despite none of them having a burning passion to play, they would have kept up with it just to spend time with him, if he and my sister had not moved away. Every holiday was filled with music and laughter. He could make anyone laugh and feel special, from the super serious to the silliest little kid. His Celebration of Life is in less than 3 weeks, which will include a recital from his current students. My brother had the brilliant idea for all us family to wear music themed clothing, partly to break the tension with his students who will be performing for a much larger audience that they’re used to, but mostly to celebrate BIL’s joy in music. He was especially known for sitting down at any piano (private space or public) and playing ”Linus and Lucy” by Vince Guaraldi. So I’m hoping to get clothing for myself, DS30 (who will be arriving from NZ the night before and hopping on a plane the next morning), and DD23. Any ideas where I can get something quickly (and not terribly expensive since it will likely be worn only once)?

PM me your PayPal/Venmo link. I want to help.

So glad to read this update. Praying for his continued recovery!

It was similar with my dad as well. My sister was driving from about 3 hours away when my dad was dying. He held on until she got there. My brothers took me to get a bite to eat and my dad passed while we were out of the room. My mom passed after most of my family left for the evening. {{Ting Tang}} Praying for you as you absorb this loss.

I don't drink ... I've had a lifelong battle with depression and alcohol makes it worse. (One drink can trigger miserable, can't get out of bed, crying for 3 days depression.) The most I will have is a sip of my husband's beer. I just don't need that albatross around my neck. I've found it can be tough in certain circles - like some people who can't wrap their head around not drinking. I just don't hang out with those people any more - they think I'm no fun and they're probably right. With my FOO, it's hard. One on one, they're great. But getting a group together ... it seems that certain family members cannot have a conversation without bringing up booze. They do, for the most part have appropriate beverages, but the emphasis on drinking gets really old - these are my siblings in their late 60s. While lots of events will offer non-alcoholic options, they are usually Diet coke (which I don't want in the evening) or a sugary soft drink. Nothing non-caffeinated that's low in sugar. I've asked for seltzer water with a splash of OJ and ended up with a White Claw. 😕 I'm always pleasantly surprised when there are decent options.