Sudokuaholics Anonymous 11

''The scientific theory I like best is that the rings of Saturn are composed entirely of lost airline luggage.''

~ Mark Russell

Just heard from the installers. They won't be delivering the microwave until the 15th!!! That's 11 more days to wait.

Back from taking Robert to the eye doctor for his post-surgical exam. He was blind in that eye and had been told that he had no chance of getting vision back in it. They were just trying to save the eye so he wouldn't need a prostetic. Well, they took the bandages off and he could see out of that eye!!!! He could even read the top 3 lines on the eye chart!!!! The eye doctor was shocked. Totally unexpected! This just made all of those trips to doctors and hospitals worth it!

Gosh, I wish that would work for Colin!!
His eye doctors convince us that it can be fixed, but nothing ever works. He has the 3rd of his injections on 21st June which were supposed to kick-start things but after 2, he can see an ever so slight improvement. They said only 3 injections. He fears that this will go on for months with no great improvement.
I'm very happy for Robert that his procedure worked.

Winter has finally arrived here, which for us is daytime temps in the high teens celsius, and night time single digits.
I have always been a summer - sun, sand and surf person but these days I welcome snuggling under a blanket with a hot cup of tea or coffee.
Well, I am a grandmother.

I hope you get some rest soon Heidi. I think you are too kind to people. I hope they are there for you when you need them.
That's a long wait for a microwave. I've never had one that had to be hard wired. All the ones we get here just have a plug for the socket, We have nooks and sockets built into our kitchens where they can be easily installed by anyone.

The long wait is because they have such a long list of jobs to do. In the past, when I've needed somgthing installed, they've done it the next day. But the pandemic has both cut down on employees doing service calls and increased sales since people are spending more time at home and doing improvements.

Robert's case is along the lines of a miracle. The doctors had all told Robert that there was NO WAY he would ever get vision back in that eye. They have no idea what happened, except maybe they relieved pressure on the optic nerve somehow and accidentally restored his vision. The surgery they did wasn't supposed to do that!!! Nor did they think that was his problem.
He will now be allowed to drive again. I've been keeping his car on my farm for him ''in case''. It just needs some brake work and he will be independant again.

Relaxed yesterday. Mowed the lawn and watched horse racing on TV. The Belmont Stakes was exciting. Essential Quality won a dramatic race. Too bad he has such an awful owner, who is about to be banned from US racing. His owner has just been found guilty by a British judge of kidnapping 2 of his adult daughters and holding them prisoner. There is a question as to if one of them is still alive. There's a strong suspision that he had her killed. Lately horse racing has had some really good horses but their owners and trainers are ruining the reputation of the sport.

I need to feed and water my birds, then I'm going to feed my cull cow, hook up the trailer, then take her so the sale barn. I have to do it today because I have an appointment at Pain Management tomorrow morning. I plan on going back to the stockyard in the afternoon for the sale.

Got her loaded with difficulty, then drove her to the stockyard. She's gone!!! It was raining buckets down there (an hour south) so I rushed home and finished the mowing outside the fence before the rain got here, Just as I finished, the sky here opened up. I did stop briefly on the way home and got a new barn fan for the alpacas. That's now installid in their inside pen to keep them cool. The shearer won't be here until next weekend.

All set to go for tomorrow. Plenty of food and water out for all the critters. I have to leave for Pain Management around 8 AM. I hope to be home before noon so I can collect eggs, pick strawberries and feed Buddy, alpacas and the 2 head of cattle that are still penned up. I need to leave for the stockyard around 2 PM. I want to watch the cow sell, and I need to pick up the check and deposit it in the bank to cover the Pain Management appointment. If I have time, I need to take the flat tire (front right) off my lawn mower. I probably won't be able to take it in to get repaired until Tuesday.

Just checked the weather forecast. Thunderstorms for the next 5 days. It's a good time to have the mower laid up (and the mowing done).

Done for the day. The cow was on her best behavior in the ring and looked good. She sold for $100 more than I was expecting, so I'm pleased. My pain management appointment went well. I got the results of the EKG (perfect) and the MRI (still a mess in L3 and L4, but looking better than it has in decades. Parts are healing, tho' there is more pinching of nerves and more arthur.) The next epidural is July 7th at 8 AM.

Tomorrow afternoon I drive Debbie to HER pain management appointment. Friday I drive Robert to his appointment with his GP. He told me the eye doctor wants both his eyes to stabilize a bit more before he goes in to be fitted for glasses. Once he gets glasses, he'll be allowed to drive himself to appointments. There IS an end in sight!!!!

Where is everybody else???? I don't want this to turn into my blog.

I'm here! I've had a few busy days and haven't got here. I try to get here as often as I can but it is disappointing that less and less people post here these days. There have been times, and still are, where SA is the place I go to tell my good, bad and sad news. I don't do it on FB.

That said, I came here to tell about my day yesterday.
It started off well, with me collecting my sister to go to a local bayside hotel to meet up with our Watercolour group friends. The hotel, which was establisjed in the 1800's and is a historic listed building, had an Art display in the rooms on the top floor. As well as some great art, there was also some lovely architechture and antique furniture to see. The steps were a bit tricky for us all (the Art group is for seniors) but we made it up and down, then had lunch in their outdoor restaurant.
All went well until we were walking back to the car park and the ground was uneven. I felt my left foot roll under me and before I could correct my balance, I was flat out on the ground. Knocked the wind out of me. My pride was hurt more than I was and a some friends helped me up after a few minutes. I drove my sister home and then came home myself to find that Col was already home from work. I was so relieved but the shock set in. I was a bit sore and sorry for myself last night but, surprisingly feel good this morning. I have a sore knee but not so bad that I can't walk on it and a bit of pain in my shoulder. It just shows how these things can happen. When I sensed danger on the stairs I was careful, but as I walked back to the car we were all talking and I was taking no notice of where I was walking.

That could have been a much worse fall than it was, CynB. I'm glad it was just the wind knocked out of you and a few aches and pains. I hope you've been easing up those sore spots by soaking in a hot bath, maybe with bubble bath or bath salts. pamper yourself, please.

I dropped off 11 dozen eggs to the food pantry today. Got Debbie to her pain management appointment.... through an absolute downpour of rain.... and back home safe. And I dropped off the flat lawn mower tire to be repaired. They I baked a blueberry pie as a reward. I'm waiting for it to cool.

Thanks Heidi, I'm feeling back to normal now, no pain. I didn't have a bath, but my shower has a hose attachment so I used that to put warmth on my sore spots.
We are having quite cold weather for us at present. At 8am it is 8C. It was 6c an hour ago, expected to be max of 17C. And we are experiencing strong winds, almost gale force in some areas. Very strange weather for us.
I am sitting here like a big blue bear, wrapped in a fluffy blanket.

Not much going on today. This morning I hitched up the flat trailer (in contrast to the livestock trailer) and helped Robert. He was given several old and enormous a/c units for scrap metal, so we picked those up and loaded them on the trailer. Then we hit the feed store for feed for Buddy and the chickens (Robert helped load the bags into the truck... good therapy for him ... then I took him back home. I parked the trailer in an out-of-the-way spot to be unloaded later, since it was raining, then inloaded the feed myself. After doing the feeding, I took a 5 hour nap. Now I'n doing back out to collect eggs and check on everyone. Tomorrow my truck will not have to go anywhere!!!! I can do farm and yard chores, and maybe even some housework. Friday I take Robert back to the eye doctor. I'm dying to hear how much improvement he's had in the past week. Saturday morning the folks come to shear the alpacas. Again, I won't have to go anywhere. Unless the tire for my lawn mower has been repaired. I haven't heard from them yet. These people are super busy because they've earned a lot of respect from the community for honesty and doing good work. I'd rather wait for them to fix it than have someone else do it and perhaps do an inferior job.

Just a quick Hello and Good Night to All! Take care!

I got my lawn mower tire back today. Of course, 5 minutes after I got it installed back on the mower the sky opened up and it started raining again. But at least I have a working Bad Boy again.

Hello all. Happy anniversary CynB. Glad you are ok after your fall. Your weather is like ours except we were souped in this morning with fog. Bad storms a day ago and a lot of my area in the Dandenong Ranges are out of power until next week and many large trees down (also a couple of houses). But no-one hurt this time. Maybe Gail can drop in and let us know if she is o.k. See you had the misfortune to get two of our 'feral idiots' skip lockdown here and go north - they should be jailed for possibly spreading covid like that. We have had restrictions eased today but still cannot visit in homes - so looking forward to seeing my daughter and eldest son. Third son lapping up the sun in 31 degree heat in Darwin - told him to suck a lemon!!
Was bored on Sat. and dyed my hair - unfortunately son rang and I talked for over an hour longer than I should - am now a redhead for a while. (Hubby hasn't noticed - as usual)
Boy your hens are prolific Heidi - 11 doz. Good your naughty cow behaved herself and you at least were rewarded for your bruises from her. Good news about your back Heidi but wish it could be quicker - you have had pain for such a long time. Robert is one very lucky person - if he gets to drive again it will take a lot of pressure off you. How did the alpacas like their haircuts? What are you doing with the fleece? If you can get someone to spin it for you (or you do it) it makes the best knitted garments.
There is a very interesting pig called the Mangalitsa - looks like a curly sheep. Would love to get some 'wool' to try but they have not made it this far south in the world as yet.
Julie - are you better now? Your short 'hi and bye' does not tell us much. Best wishes to you.

The alpacas are getting their haircuts tomorrow morning. I hope.

Took Robert back to the eye doctor today. The bad news is that the vision in the left eye is starting to turn dark again. He says it's due to glaucoma, and they can't really do anything about it. He can still see out of that eye, tho. That's the good news. And the surgical area has healed nicely.

Morning all!
Heidi, Sorry to hear that Robert has had a setback with his vision. I hope he retains some vision in the eye, better than none.
Midge, yep, there are idiots everywhere. When things were really bad down there, those girls from Qld slipped into Victoria for a party and then came back and infected many people. That took a while to manage. So far so good here. But how irresponsible, these current people were. They drove, stopping all the way through NSW and into Qld spreading their germs. They will be charged up here and the fine is in the thousands $$$. No sympathy.

Our Wedding Anniversary yesterday. We had dinner in a lovely bayside restaurant but it was so cold we couldn't eat outside and watch the lights on the bay. However it was a lovely meal and nice to celebrate our 33 years together.
Saturday morning now, waiting for grandson to show up to help Col clear out our 'jungle' in the back yard. Over the past 3 years, it's been hard for him to keep up with it and he won't ask for help. My son is moving house and my daughter's partner had a motorbike accident so is out of action. Grandson is a tall strapping 22yo. He'll do fine.

Happy Anniversary, CynB and Col.

The alpacas have been sheared, and are much more comfortable. They were easier to catch and halter this time as well. Maybe they know me better and trust me more. It went super fast.... all 5 of them in one hour. And nobody hurt or spit on.

I'm working on enlarging the smaller alpaca pen into a larger one. They started out as six 16 foot by 6 foot dog runs. I took out a dividing wall between 2 of them and put in a new, strong floor for a 16 foot by 12 foot pen. I also put in a new floor in another 6 foot by 16 foot pen. I'm in the process of taking down the dividing wall between that one and the adjoining dog run to make another 12 foot by 16 foot pen. I just need to replace the floor on the new half. I'll use treated 2x6's again, and it should go easily. The hardest part is taking down the old wire dividers and removing the rotted plywood floor. The wire dividers are now gone (all that's left is to cut out the support boards going across the middle) and I just have to take up the old floor. The underfloor supports were built (by me) using treated lumber and are still in fine shape. I'll just put down fresh plywood in the other 2 runs to use them for storing straw and pine shavings for bedding.

OK.... got a wee bit more work done in the pen project. All that's left is the floor. I'll oick up the 15 boards I need on Monday or Wednesday (Tuesday they're FINALLY installing the new microwave), then I can get the job done before the new alpacas arrive. I'm getting 3 new alpacas. London is an 8 year old light Rose Gray female, Noel is a 3 1/2 year old medium fawn female and Hunter is a 3 year old medium fawn male. Noel will be guaranteed bred to a dark rose gray (he looks like an umber chocolate color) named Samuel. The baby might be any possible color.

Oh my goodness! Looks like I haven't been here in too long. Life sure is complicated.

Great TOPP, Heidi!

Seems as if you have been mighty busy helping various friends, Heidi! I hop you got to Pain Management for you!

Hooray! Good post eye surgery news for Robert! I'm hoping for a miracle for Col, too!

Heidi, that's awful news about that horse owner! I hope they're wrong that he had his daughter killed. Will they ever be able to find out for sure? Why do you suppose so many owners and trainers are such low lifes?


CynB, I hope the 3rd injection for Col is the charm and he begins to see some more significant improvement! I'm glad you're able to enjoy the beginning of winter temperatures.

Heidi, that's a LOT of errands to fit into a pain management day! Thankfully at least some of the test results are showing some improvement! Several more weeks to wait until your next injection. (Hubby had a follow-up with his pain doc yesterday and was surprised to get another injection.)

Good news that your cow brought a better paycheck than you expected, Heidi! I'm shocked about your prolific egg layers, Heidi! Eleven dozen is a LOT of eggs in a relatively short time frame!

CynB, I'm so glad the results of your fall weren't worse! It can be VERY frightening. As we are all getting older, it becomes imperative to be ever more vigilant! What a relief that you are already feeling better! I'm glad you get get snuggled into a warm and fluffy blanked while the cold temperatures and strong winds swirl around!

(Hubby fell hard on his back - and head - a couple of days ago. We ran through the type of questions we think are asked to screen for concussion & I watched him carefully the rest of the day. HIs physiatrist & the pain doc expressed concern that we didn't get him to the hospital to be checked.)

Your blueberry pie sounds like an excellent reward for another VERY busy day, Heidi!

Midge, what a wonderful and newsy post! Seems that you're getting extreme weather like CynB mixed in with power outages. I'm hoping you don't experience any power outage. I'm sorry to hear about the 'Covid Idiots' and continuing lockdown. I hope you'll be able to see your eldest son & daughter soon. I'm guessing your third son will be staying where he is and enjoying those lovely temperatures.

I'm amazed that your husband didn't notice you hair color change, Midge.

I checked in with Wikipedia to learn more about the Mangalitsa pigs (spelled Mangalica by Wikipedia). Here's what I learned: 'The Mangalica is a Hungarian breed of domestic pig. It was developed in the mid-19th century by crossbreeding Hungarian breeds from Nagyszalonta and Bakony with the European wild boar and the Serbian Šumadija breed. The Mangalica pig grows a thick, curly coat of hair. The only other pig breed noted for having a long coat is the extinct Lincolnshire Curly Coat pig of England.'

Amazingly, Illinois is one of the states that is going into Stage 5, which is almost back

Well, the comment ran over, which I haven't done in a long while. Here is the rest:

Amazingly, Illinois is one of the states that is going into Stage 5, which is almost back to normal after the pandemic. Mask restrictions are being eased, including in many stores, and people are beginning to go out to eat in groups and socializing. It's a bit scary/unnerving.

I have been able to get off the pain medication prescribed after my foot surgery. I have another follow-up visit with the doctor on Tuesday. I'm still trying to maintain minimal weight-bearing on my right foot, so one get out of the house for doctor visits. I'm hoping I'll be able to drive within a few weeks, but a lot depends on the doctor's thoughts after he checks my foot and the X-rays.

I hope Robert isn't too discouraged that his vision improvement has taken a bit of a turn. At least, if he is cleared for driving, that will do a lot to return some independence to him. Also, the healing of the surgical area is good news!

Happy Anniversary, CynB and Col! I'm glad you were able to get out and have a nice dinner, even though it was too cold to enjoy the view outside.

Have Col and your grandson begun work on the 'jungle'? It's amazing how quickly things can grow up and take over.

I hope the alpacas enjoyed their hair cuts! Will you be able to get their fleece spun? Do you knit or crochet, or have someone who can make you a lovely warm sweater?

While reading that you are expanding the alpaca pens, I was wondering if their numbers were increasing. When will the new alpacas arrive? When will Noel's baby likely arrive? Much excitement with the alpacas!

It's getting quite late here, so I'll say Good Night for now. Thinking of everyone who posts or who has posted over the years. I'll try to be better about stopping by regularly. Take care, Everyone! Sending healing energy, prayers, positive thoughts, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, and to all!

Nice to get one of Julie's lovely long posts!
Sorry about your husband's fall. I hope there are no more repercussions from it. Glad you're off the pain tablets for your foot. I hope things get back to normal soon.
I'm still fine after my fall, but I just heard earlier that another friend from the Art group had a similar fall yesterday that fractured bones in her foot, now she's wearing one of those boots. She had has lots of broken bones in recent years because of osteoporosis. I just said to my sister how lucky I must have been to have strong bones.
Today I'm off to have a big Greek lunch with some of my cousins from that side of the family. Good times!

I just uploaded pictures of the 3 new alpacas I'm buying. I'm just waiting for the seller to have them sheared before I pick them up. Her shearer had been delayed because of bad weather, and they're late being sheared. There'd be a longer delay in shearing them if I had to get my guy back here. He's really busy.

Hi everybody. Sorry I haven't posted for a bit. Not up to much typing these days.

Heidi, I thought you might be interested in a recent article about a high-priced kelpie...

https://www.abc.net.au/news/rural/2021-06-14/hoover-the-kelpie-working-dog-sael-record/ 100213124

Of course, check for spaces in the link. There's also some great videos of him working. Just look for Eulooka Hoover.
Well, stay safe, stay well, and I'll catch you all next time.

I like Don Spencer's video ''Bob The Kelpie''.

I've gotten the lawn mowed today, and even did a little housework! Tomorrow will be a day of pretty much waiting around for the men to show up to install the microwave. I will just be sitting around with a good book eagerly waiting for them.
My chickens got their first day going free range today. They were thrilled to go out and graze on grass and weeds and hunt bugs. I will be locking them back in for the night and for tomorrow, because the dogs will be out in the barnyard while the men are here to install the microwave. It'll keep the dogs happy-ish. But I don't want the chickens to be chased.

Heidi, your new alpacas look great!

Hooray! It's so nice to see a post from Saltie! Other than having trouble with much typing, I hope you're feeling well, Saltie! Is there any way you can dictate a post into some sort of program that could type it for you? Hubby is finding more ways to do that with his phone, as his vision continue to get worse & he has trouble typing. Please take good care of yourself and drop by when you can just to let us know how you're doing!

Thanks for sharing that story about the Kelpie! He must be quite a herder!

When I get some time, I'll look for YouTube of the Kelpie and Bob, the Kelpie!

Heidi, good for you getting the lawn mowed today and some housework! I'm sure the chickens had a great time going free range! I hope the men get your new microwave oven installed in a timely fashion! What good book will you be reading while you wait? One of my sisters has shared 3 books with me in the past month. My favorite was 'Where the Crawdads Sing' by Della Owens.

I hope DOrA and hound are both well. We miss you.

Thinking of Everyone and sending , healing energy, positive powerful thoughts, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, and prayers. Take care, Everyone!

I've read ''Where The Crawdads Sing''. It's an incredibly moving book. I'm just doing light reading now.... cozy mysteries. I'm going through Emily Brightwell's Mrs. Jeffries mysteries at the moment.

Still waiting for them to show up with my microwave. They gave me a window between 2 and 5 pm, and it's 4:30 pm. I'm hungry. Most of the special bariatric food in my house is to be prepared in a microwave.

They didn't show up when they said they would. I just got a call from them apologizing, and telling me it'll be another 2-3 hours. They had a major unforseen problem with a previous client. I let most of the dogs out into the barnyard during the ''window'', and the novelty wore off fast. Once 5 pm passed, I let them back into the yard, and Zorro rushed over to the fish pond and dove into the deep end. Dawn followed him. Zorro paddled around for a while, enjoying himself immensely. Dawn got out as fast as she could. She's not a fan of swimming, she discovered.