Sudokuaholics Anonymous 11

So true DorA. Especially as I am getting ready to go to my old friend's service. I so wish we had caught up earlier.

Suzy, sending warm {{HUGS}} your way as you remember your last date shortly before your anniversary. A bit of wine is a good idea, and it's nearly the weekend.

CynB, what wonderful granddaughters you have! And what a wonderful relationship you have with them! How sweet that they wanted to see you and wish you a wonderful trip/cruise! You (and they) are blessed to be so close both in spirit and in physical distance! I hope you had a wonderful dinner!

DOrA, I really like the Gift of Time! I wonder if it's true - probably no way to say for sure - but a good reminder of how important time is for all of us!

Midge, so sorry to learn of your friend's passing. Time has a way of slipping away from all of us, in spite of good intentions!

Thinking of all of our fellow Sudokuaholics and sending healing energy, positive thoughts, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, prayers, and

Hugs Midge

Alie’s tummy reacts badly to most foods, which is kind of sad because she also has an eating disorder that has her eating all the time! The food in the Philippines doesn’t make her feel bad! Unfortunately when she asks how something is cooked, the translation she is given tells her nothing. Not surprising really since her translator doesn’t cook, her husband does. Um, what does that remind you of, oh, me!

Major storms on the east coast of Australia this afternoon. Of course we got 20mm, less than an inch. I checked today and the long term average for this month is something like 117mm, nearly 5 inches. This is the only rain we’ve had so far.

Forgot to mention, Alie has lost weight over there. She knows because her bras are too loose to help much. That’s kind of a problem because this A cup mother had 2 DD cup daughters

I'm back. Mile was helping out on the farm yesterday and cut through my phone, TV and internet cable. All I knew was that I was without service. The repair crew just found the break and repaired it..... just in time. We're having awful weather. High winds up to 80 MPH / 128 KPH, plus we're under tornado watch. At least one has already touched down in Padukah, Kentucky. And the thunderstorms are due to start soon.

Oops. That's Mike, not Mile.

Oops Heidi! I’m glad they’re fixed. 128kph is terrifying. Though maybe only if you have gum trees

It looks like Alie might have a job close to home. The pay will be nowhere near as good, but guaranteed hours means she’d earn more over time. Plus it’s walking distance from home, only 2 km!

The winds are down to a more reasonable 20 -30 MPH, still high, but not terrifying.

Just dropping by to say Hello and Good Night. No time to read. Working on tax preparation. YUCK!

Sending healing energy, prayers, positive thoughts, , and {{{{{HUGS}}}}}

Heidi, where I live 30mph wind gusts are common, had some today in fact. But it is windier here than it is in town.

I have been feeling so disturbed after the awful events of yesterday in New Zealand. The distance and isolation of Australia and New Zealand has always made me feel safer than most other countries. We have all witnessed terrorism at it's worst. Call me racist, but I have always thought of terrorists as radical Muslims, those ones that were happy to give up their lives to fly a plane into a building to kill the 'infidels'!
But a far right white supremacist Australian who feels it's a good idea to travel to our closest neighbouring country, a land of beauty and peace - and shoot up a mosque, kill and wound so many people, all the while filming it with a gopro - has appalled me so much.
I feel disturbed, sad, wretched and, yes, embarrassed!

I find white supremasists as scariy as muslim terrorists. They all hate irrationally and feel justified to kill anyone that isn't one of them.

My heart breaks for the victims and their families.

Unfortunately, I'm terrified that this will set off retaliatory acts of terrorism by muslims targeting caucasians now.

Suzy, I hope Alie can find someone to give her some cooking tips for the food she has been eating. I've never looked, but surely there must be a Philippine cookbook that might give her some ideas. Are there any Philippine restaurants anywhere near where you live?

Heidi, I'm glad the repair crew were able to quickly find the break and return service to you before the storms hit! I hope they weren't as severe as predicted!

Suzy, the job opportunity for Alie sounds pretty good. Had she applied there before leaving? How does anyone find a job that close to home while out of the country? Maybe she'll still have time to take an additional assignment occasionally where she made more money, but being so close to home and having regular hours are both pluses!

The tragic shootings in New Zealand are very troubling! It's so hard to imagine anyone harboring so much hatred and feeling justified to take the lives of others. It's very frightening!

I'm thinking very positive thoughts for everyone who was impacted by the shootings, and sending positive thoughts to all of our fellow Sudokuaholics, as well as , prayers, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, and healing energy!

What disturbs me most is that he was so sure of the justification for his actions that he didn't end by turning the gun on himself.

I am so saddened and embarrassed that we managed to breed and nurture such a creature. My only consolation is that he is likely to be permanently tucked away where he can do no further harm.

My niece knows the people who own the place with the job.

I’m so worried about Alie. She has all of the “contact a doctor immediately “ if you have these side effects from her malaria pill. She slept all of today and feels better tonight, but I wish she was home. One of the problems with a foreign country is nobody speaks your language. On Monday I’m calling to make an appointment with her doctor for the day she comes home. This is a big deal for me because I don’t make phone calls, ever.

Saltie, I blame politicians and the media. Politicians dehumanise muslims/refugees and so do the Murdoch media. They are a threat and are the reason our lives suck. Most of us know this is rubbish, but too many people get their news solely from Murdoch and politicians.

Cyn, maybe it’s because I lived in America, but I’ve always considered white supremacists to be a bigger risk than radical Muslims. If you count incidents outside of Muslim countries, white people are responsible for more. Muslims did the big one so are considered the only bad guys.

Hatred is a terrible thing, always. And innocent people suffer.

I'm in agreement with the concerns of all who are reacting to the horrible massacre in New Zealand.

Heidi, you are so right! Unfortunately, the fear mongering that has become so prevalent seems to encourage hatred. It takes time, patience, and love to get to know people who are unlike ourselves. Too many people have decided to take the easy way out and just decide anyone who looks different is bad/wrong/expendable. It's a very frightening time.

Suzy, I hope Alie will soon feel better and a quick visit to the doctor when she gets home will put your concerns at ease. When will she get home?

Heidi, I hope you are still experiencing drier weather!

CynB, I hope your preparations for the cruise are going well!

saltie, you don't need to accept responsibility for the upbringing of the person involved in the mosque shootings. Unfortunately, all of us are aware of such people in many of our countries. I don't know what the answer is, but those of us who were blessed to be brought up in an intact family that taught and shared love and understanding seem to be more accepting of others who are not like ourselves than people who didn't have good role models.

Tax preparation is not going well here. I haven't even been able to practice the cello since my lesson on Wednesday. I've decided to take a break from the computer/internet until I've made progress preparing for our tax meeting. I'll be thinking of all of you, but I may be absent for the next week or so.

I'm sending an extra supply of {{{{{{{{HUGS}}}}}}}}, positive thoughts, healing energy, , prayers, and for everyone to keep you supplied until I'm able to drop by again. Take care, Everyone!

Good friends are like quilts - they age with you, and yet, they never lose their warmth. Take good care of them!!!!

The corned beef is in the crock pot. The place is starting to smell good! Late start, though. I didn't set the alarm time correctly.

Anyone have an 'update' on MizT?

When I last spoke to her, her leg was hurting too much for her to walk to her computer. Her chair won't fit thru' that door.

Surgery is one week from tomorrow. I'm being VERY careful to stick the pre-surgical diet. But I don't like it much. What I wouldn't give for a large glass of cold chocolate milk and a thick corned beef sandwich on rye with real stone ground mustard.

Hello to Everyone! Just had to sneak in for a minute and say Happy St. Patrick's day!

Heidi, good for you for sticking to your diet! Your determination should see you through! Keeping you and all medical professionals in my thoughts and prayers for a very successful surgery in 1 week!

MizT, I hope someone finds a way to get you some relief for your pain! Gentle {{{HUGS}}} to you!

Hoping everyone is staying healthy and enjoying the coming change of season! Sending lots of {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, positive thoughts, healing energy, and !

It's finally starting to dry out here. And it's not supposed to rain for another week!!!

Agree - the fanatics of any religion / group are the worst. We cannot single out any one group. So hurt and shamed the gunman grew his hatred in our lovely country.

MizT has been posting updates on TOS. She’s having an injection soon, but not the same kind. It is hoped this kind won’t give her headaches.

Anning doesn’t help. Blaming the victim takes on a whole different meaning with people like him. Sadly I’d put money on him getting more than 19 votes next election.

It’s only 20C, but 99% humidity. No rain on the radar though.
That’s 68F

It's only 43˚F / 6.1˚C here, but it feels warmer because the sun is shining and there's no wind for a change.
Your weather sounds perfect, Suzy.

Got the all clear from Col's Doctor to go on the cruise. Yesterday's laser procedure was successful, everything is looking fine. So off we go on Saturday! I may not get here while we are away. It will depend on just how good the ship wifi is. I have heard that Royal Caribbean is better than most, so fingers crossed.

That is WONDERFUL news, CynB !!!! I hope you both have a delightful time on the cruise. How long will the cruise be?

I think Anning's reaction to the egging showed him up as a coward and a bully. Hopefully that won't sit too well with those who might otherwise support him.

Tomorrow morning I go in for my final pre-surgical testing at the hospital. It's getting close and I'm starting to get nervous. I'm hoping I've thought of everything. Dennie will be stopping here twice a day to check on, feed and water the dogs, birds and fish. Mike will be checking on the cattle and horses (who better than a Vet?). Heidi will be staying at the Vet Clinic. Her surgery to be spayed is the same day as my surgery, and she'll stay there a couple of days to recover since I'll be in the hospital. We had a run-thru this morning. I took her to the Vet Clinic to visit, and she was THRILLED to discover that this is where her buddy Mike hangs out. She adores him.

Dennie??? That's Debbie.

I count myself lucky that ''vitamin 'I' '' (ibuprofen) still works for me. After some manual labor, yesterday, I woke this morning with a serious backache. 900 mg with breakfast and the day was nearly pain free. I was out working, again, today, so I think a before bed dose is in order...

Hi all,
Heidi, hope all goes well with the testing at the hospital.
2 Days to go. So much to do. I've got it all in my head and in notes. Now I have to put it into action and pack the suitcases!! Wish me luck.
Just thought I'd post the link to the itinerary for the cruise in case you wonder where we are.
https://www.icruise.com/itineraries/12-night-new-zealand-cruise_radiance-of-the-seas_3-23-2019 .html?refPage=src&fbclid=IwAR1ZKGVTl4kP8l3eLkANBOeD0doyJtobOeqTJLUC8A9e5aWKMLbNqVD_vr8

Akaroa is the Port for Christchurch, that will be a visit tinged with sadness.
Port Chalmers is the Port for Dunedin, where sudoku member Mads from NZ lives. We will be seeing her that day.

Hope you and Col have a wonderful holiday CynB - after the past 12 months you both deserve a good break.
All the best for your last test before surgery Heidi - you are so well organised. I want to say best of luck but it isn't luck - it is hard work and determination that will get you great results and you are just the person to achieve it. Maybe fur Heidi won't be so keen on bf Mike after he spays her.
DorA - maybe a day of rest will help your sore back. Hope it is better
Hope MizT is on the improve. Whoever is on TOS, please wish her well from us.
Saltie - Anning has a foul mouth and that should be enough to see him censured. Unfortunately the stupid boy who egged him assaulted him first, giving Anning an excuse to lash out.
Suzie - what if you give Alie a Philippine cooking course for her birthday or as a treat?
Best wishes to all

The pre-op testing went perfectly.... they even let me change the time of my surgery! I was supposed to be at the hospital at 8 AM, and since the Vet Clinic doesn't open until 8:30 AM, it would have complicated dropping Heidi off there first. They kindly switched me with another patient and I now have to be at the hospital by 10 AM instead. That will give us plenty of time to drop her off at the Vet's on the way to the hospital. The blood tests they did today came out perfectly, too. Just 15 months ago I had horrendous blood tests, so I was wondering how everything would look, but no worries. Even my white cell count is perfect.