Sudokuaholics Anonymous 11

''Going to church doesn't make you a Christian any more than standing in a garage makes you a car.''

~ Billy Sunday

How true, Heidi! I'm sure most church-goers are good honest Christians but, so often we see people who claim to be so devout but are selfish, cruel, uncaring and often criminal. As my mother always used to say, 'you can be a decent human being by doing the right thing and treating everybody well.'
I worry about that ear of yours, I really do.
Midge - how awful for you! How did the fire happen? Not what you needed I'm sure what with Covid and your health problems. Hope you have enough help to get it sorted.

Our lockdown has extended to Sunday. Getting more Delta cases each day, but still less than 20 per day. And mainly children. The big problem is that the experts can't work out where they all got it from.
We went in for Colin to have his next injection this morning. It was so good driving on the main Motorway in light traffic.

Hi all,
Midge. So pleased that you are alright after the fire. Gosh, the last few years have been so rough for you and many others. Replacing all the things would be a nightmare.
My daughters dish washer had been leaking and the family have to move out for 3 days while they dry and replace some of the cupboards. The kids are looking forward to new accommodation starting tonight after school.
Heidi. I hope you get some pain relief with you bad ear and can get some sleep. It would be nice to have one of the kittens become domesticated.
Cyn. Poor Col getting a bad reaction to the vaccine. Glad to hear your back is improving too. Looks like QLD are in for Covid spread with the delta variant now.

Our main air/con which does most of the house, has finally died. Amazingly, it has lasted approx 16 yrs. It is booked in to be looked at in 2 wks which is when the new kitchen should go in.
I have a few more cupboards to empty in the kitchen and just leaving essentials. It will be so nice to have order again.
Pop is awake and waiting for his porridge so catch you all later.

Nola - Pop is certainly a lucky man to have you caring for him. I am a bit over-whelmed with the enormity of fully emptying a 5br house - everything smells like burnt plastic and is black and greasy. Dripping down the walls - the ceilings have 'popped' with the water. Very toxic. Looks like the fire started from an electric gun that turned itself off when it heated up and turned on again when it cooled. Was hanging over the top of a 4 poster bed so it wasn't near anything but must have slipped and set fire to the mattress. Forensic took away a jumbled mess of burnt cables and wires. The plastic throughout the house (4 levels) was from a collection of laser discs and records (over 300 of them) that melted, plus lounge suite etc.
Hope Colin's treatment went well yesterday. Not good news with Delta in north Qld.
Will come back later - skip is arriving soon and we have to go back to house.

Midge, that is so awful. I really can't imagine anything more disruptive not to even mention everything you have lost. Furniture can be replaced but precious mementos can't. As I said yesterday, I hope you have plenty of assistance getting this all emptied and sorted.
Nola, we had the same problem with our air-con last year. It gave up after 16 years too. We had to replace the main unit but of course the ducting etc was still okay. I hope you daughter's dishwasher problems get sorted. Kids can always see the bright side of things, can't they? When our kitchen was being done, the laundry was my temporary kitchen. I had an electric jug, toaster and microwave to pick from, and most cooking was done on the BBQ, which is Col's domain - yayy!
Where is Heidi? And Julie?

I can't believe that you're having to deal with this fire on top of all your health problems, Midge. But at least nobody died in the fire. You have to look at whatever positive aspects you can find. (((HUGS )))

I'm feeling like cr@p. Achy, feverish. The ear is bad and the back is in major spasm from unloading feed while in a weakened condition. And the ear infection feels like it's poisoning my whole body right now. I'd go to the doctor, but I know that this ear infection no longer responds to any antibiotics.

My week old turkey poults played a trick on me today. They learned to escape from the stock tank where I had them. Usually, young birds can't get out until they're 4 weeks old. I had to move them out to the barn several weeks before I'd planned to. I do have a heat lamp set up for them in there. And little Imp is fascinated by them! That kitten has a very strong hunting instinct!

Really under the weather from the ear infection. My whole body is aching, and the ear is alternating between massive amounts of pus leaking out and fresh blood leaking out. I've been doing nothing except the bare minimum of feeding and watering critters.
I did hear from the lawn mower mechanics. The starter went out on the mower, and they had to order a new one. Hopefully, it'll be in soon.

Heidi, I know that antibiotics won't work on your ear but surely the doctor could at the very least syringe your ear and clear it of all the pus and blood for the time being. It can't be good for your entire body to deal with that stuff.
Col's eye has been a bloodshot mess since the needle the other day. He's not in any pain so it's not infected. Doc says not to worry he must just have hit a blood vessel. No point in worrying, he's still blind in it anyway, can't get much worse.'
We're still in lockdown supposedly until tomorrow but I wouldn't be surprised if they extend it.
Things are not looking good covid-wise in the US, I saw a comparison of cases 1 month ago to the present. It was scary that cases could escalate so quickly. This Delta virus is vicious and subsequent strains will probably be worse. Scary stuff!
Sorry for the doom and gloom - I should be saying, have a nice weekend. I think I'll facetime my kids and grandies. I think Chloe is at her Dad's for a change. Now she has a weekend job and a boyfriend, we seldom see her. No work during lockdown so she's coming to her Dad's.

The COVID situation in the US has gotten so bad because only 1/2 of the eligible adults have gotten the vacinations. The other half have refused to do so, citing all sorts of idiotic claptrap about them interfering with their ''rights''. And those same people refuse to wear masks or follow social distancing guidelines. Fortunately, those same covididiots are now dropping like flies, overcrowding the hospitals worse than they were a year ago, and infecting each other at lightning speeds. Sadly, they're also infecting innocent children as well, and the Delta variant is killing children at an alarming rate. At this point, no vaccine has been approved for children under 12, so all adults should wear masks around children. But the covididiots who refuse to take any precautions don't care about the lives of anybody else. I think we're now seeing Darwin's Survival Of The Fittest in action. The truly ignorant are removing themselves, and their children, from the gene pool.

Still under the weather. My body feels like I've been beaten head to toe with a baseball bat.

The covididiots should be made to nurse the ones who have this horrible virus - they don;t believe in it, so they won't get it. I totally approve of the Darwin theory in this case.
Nothing much to report here - been at the house each day but cannot do anything but pick what is to go or stay. Sounds silly but I actually was upset abut throwing out my 49yr old slow cooker - use it at lest 3 times a week but the lining has become a bit porous so it had to go. Have a storage unit and moving all salvageable stuff there after it is cleaned. Husband cannot cope and hasn't been back for days. Probably just as well - he has Labrador tendencies. Having spine injection on Friday (had to be the 13th!!) so looking forward to some mobility after that.
Sorry you feel so lousy Heidi - there must be something the Drs can do besides painkillers.
Imp sounds like a real cutie - hope he/she can help to tame the other two a bit. (and stays away from your chickens)
CynB - this is the place for doom and gloom. I have to keep a smile on my face all of the time and say I'm fine - it is a relief to vent here.
Looks like your lockdown is easing - I hope so. And wish Col the best for these injections - such a long time he has had with this.
DorA - how is the clearing going? What is the real estate market like in U.S.? My ex b-i-l has a house in Rockport Texas he cannot sell and has abandoned it to live in Maui.
Hi Julie,Nola and all who come to this site - wish you all the best. Cheers.

Hi all - I like that survival of the fittest idea too. It appears the same everywhere that it is the ignorant not doing the right thing.
We are out of our lockdown since yesterday at 4pm. Today - 5 cases, all in quarantine. It has been upsetting to see this Delta strain attacking children - they are always the innocent victims.
I think we are only 30% vaccinated here in Australia, mainly because of the slowness in obtaining vaccines. All they have had was AZ which they used on the over 60's. There has been some Pfizer but not enough with more coming soon. And now it looks like we have Moderna coming. They are now asking for anyone over 18 to be vaccinated. Also added to the front line workers like hospital staff they are adding teachers and childcare workers. Hayley is studying teaching and due to do 1 month prac from next week. And Madeline is a child care worker. So both are now eligible, hopefully they can get appointments soon.

Midge, It must be so distressing having to dump your favourite things. I have items that I have owned since I got married the first time in 1968 that would upset me more to lose than any more expensive things that I own. Objects can be replaced, memories can't!
Hi to Heidi, Nola, DorA and Julie - where are you Julie? And to any other lurkers - peekaboo!

Yes... objects are just things. Nobody lost their lives, and you still have the memories. It could have been so much worse. Fire is a terrifying thing to go through. You'll make it through this, Midge, and it might help you see what's important in your life.

Here in the USA, we're fortunate enough that there's enough vaccine that anybody who wants to be vaccinated can be. That's why it's so disturbing that only about 50% of the population has been vaccinated. The division is along political party lines, sadly. Look at any map of the US that shows party lines, and any map that shows new COVID cases. It's astonishing how much the new cases and Republican numbers correspond dirrectly. The Republicans have disseminated so much disinformation about the COVID virus being a Democratic plot, and that it's dangers have been grossly exagerated by Democratic leadership, that the people who believe them refuse to do anything like wear masks, social distence or get vaccinated. Of course, the Republican leaders who disseminate these lies HAVE themselves been vaccinated, and were among the first to have done so. Now with this Delta variant being so much more contagious, these Republican followers are getting ill in droves, and begging for the vaccines after it's too late to get them. Yet they're still refusing to wear masks in public, and still gathering in large groups to spread the virus. I'm starting to believe that the COVID-19 virus is doing us a favor by removing these incredibly stupid people.

I have a pain management appointment at 8 AM tomorrow... no epidural, but that means I have to be up at 6 AM. I am NOT a morning person.

I'll give Julie a call tomorrow if she doesn't check in tonight. I worry about her when she remains absent so long.

Just had a big surprise. Mike and I were in the tobacco barn, talking, and we heard a sound like a tiny kitten squeeking. We looked around and found a little black kitten, eyes just barely opened, hidden in an old tub in an elevated storage room in the barn. It's healthy looking, a male, and is well fed. We figure Inky is the mother. That explains why she was so frantic to escape from the pen I had her in. She was about to give birth to a single kitten. Now that I know where the kitten is, I plan on handling him every day to get him used to people so I can catch him easily and get him neutered when he's older. I put a bowl of water and a bowl of dry cat food in that storage room, and a can of cat food in the tub with the kitten. Inky will get a treat, and she can start teaching her baby to eat solid food, especially if I put a can of cat food in with them regularly.

It's HOT outside. High today is 97˚F / 36.1˚C with a heat index of 107˚F / 41.7˚C. And we'rve had intermittent thunderstorms today as well.

Spoke to Julie. She's fine, just very busy.

Because of the heat, I didn't get a lot of work done outside today. Mostly just watering and feeding. I did get some of the hardware installed to fasten the new corral gates to the walls in the barn. Now if we have to run some cattle through the barn, the gates won't break loose if cattle hit them hard.

Super TOPP on this page, Heidi!

A huge thank you to Heidi for calling me tonight to check on me. One of the things I love about the people on this site is how caring and considerate they all are! Heidi, I hope your ear is feeling better! It must be very difficult to concentrate on what needs to be done when you're dealing with the pain. I hope the chicks, turkeys, cats, new black kitten, etc. are all doing well, and hope your lawn mower can be repaired and returned soon1

Life has just been kind of busy for us! I'm trying to do more and careful cello practice. Hubby continues to deal with back/shoulder/leg pain & weakness. He can't get in to see the neurologist, but has seen the spine and pain management doctor, though much too soon for his next epidural. He could only get a phone appointment with one of the neurosurgeons. Frustration on top of pain on top of more frustration. His hearing seems to be progressively worse and has had appointment with an audiologist and Ear, Nose & Throat doctor. It seems as if they're dragging their feet about getting him hearing aids. Did I mention that I am also getting extremely frustrated? We both feel tired much of the time. I probably get 6-7 hours of sleep a night, partly because I'm up every 1 1/2 to 2 hours all night. Hubby sleeps longer, but not restfully.

It's so nice seeing comments from Nola! You are to be commended for taking in Greg's Dad. I hope you'll be able to keep him with you as long as possible. How exciting that you'll be getting a new/updated kitchen!

Our 'kids' are also in their early 40's. I'm not really sure how that happened so quickly. We're lucky to still have a 5-year-old grandie, as the other are approaching and in their teens.

CynB, I'll be sending some very strong positive thoughts for the continued eye injections to have a positive impact! He must be so frustrated with the entire process! I'm also so sorry that he had such a major reaction to his COVID vaccination. I know you'll be so relieved when he's fully vaccinated! I hope your back continues to improve!

Oh my goodness, Midge! I am SO shocked and devastated to hear about the fire that destroyed much of your home! I can't imagine what that must be like. The good news is that no one was injured (if I read correctly). I wish there were some way to help, as it sounds like you have a large task ahead of you. I hope your family can be of some help, thought I'm guessing the lockdowns make getting help difficult. Please remember to take care of yourself and your health!

DOrA, I hope all is going well with the work you have been doing to prepare your property for sale. I hope you will soon have accomplished all that you set out to do, and the property will be sold and for a good price!

Heidi, it sounds like you got a lot accomplished for someone who is going to take it easy. Can the doctor flush some of the infected gunk and blood out of your ear?

Thinking of Everyone! I will try to be better about dropping i

I guess it's not too surprising that my comment was too long. Here's the rest:

Thinking of Everyone! I will try to be better about dropping in for updates! Take care, Everyone! Sending healing energy, prayers, positive thoughts, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}}, and for All! Stay healthy!

Nice to see you here, Julie even though I've occasionally seen you on FB. Sorry to hear about your hubby and all of his problems, so similar to Col's. He had a hearing test at work this week and all up only has 67% hearing, down from 82% last time. I said to him I told you that you were deaf. He said, 'what?' Shaking my head and sighing.....
Heidi, how sweet about the kitten. Did you name him?

Years ago, my daughter and I used to have what we called 'Nanny days' where we would meet at one of our shopping centres (malls) and go shopping together every 2 weeks. That hasn't happened in about 7 years since she went back to work. She was off work today after a minor medical procedure yesterday so we met up. It was lovely to do that again, I have missed it so much. And because of lockdowns etc, I hadn't seen her since early July.

My lawn mower is finally ready! They had to replace the starter, and the new one took a while to arrive. I'm off to pick it up now.

Lawn mower has come home, and lawn is mowed. The grass was so tall that I put the mower at it's highest setting. I'll have to mow again, at a lower setting, in 3 or 4 days. And I'm done for the day. Too hot, with a heat index of 105˚F / 40.5˚C right now.

It's . I'm off to pick up Robert and take him for a haircut, then an appointment with his GP. This is a follow up from his heart surgery.

Imp was very playful this morning. Wanted me to pet him/her and scratch gently behind the ears. That's a first. Imp has decided it's a lot nicer being friendly with humans than being feral. In a few days, I'll try to figure out if Imp is male or female. I'm taking the handling slowly to prevent upsets. I hope I can teach the new baby kitten, Spooky, that I'm his friend. I've started handling him every day.

Spooky! I like that name.

Nothing much happening here. We were due for Col to have Annual Leave in a few weeks. That has been delayed due to his work commitments so will be put off until October, after school holidays. It is so difficult to decide what to do due to Covid - where to go? Can't cross borders into NSW which is what we had hoped to do. Can't get too far away from home in case of another lockdown. If there is to be one we have to get home quickly or we could be stuck for weeks paying for accommodation not knowing when we can get back. We're thinking a few short overnight trips closer to home, where if there's a lockdown we can get back home in time. And some day trips nearer to home. Still working on it.

I just had a horrible day. I took Robert to the Doctor's, and had to wait in my truck, on a super hot and muggy day, for over 3 hours for him. Then he asked if we could stop and get him something to eat. His favorite place was closed, so we went elsewhere, where I had to wait in the truck for another half hour (I would have refused to stop if I'd known it would take more than 5 minutes). While driving him home, the transmission went out in my truck. Completely. I had to call for a tow truck and arrange for a rental. While the tow truck driver was trying to hook up my truck, a friend of Robert's was passing, stopped, and offered to drive him home. Once we finally got my truck loaded, and I got the rental, I drove home through a series of brief thunderstorms. As soon as I walked in the door at home, the power went out. No lights, no a/c.I called the power company and they said they had outages all over the county. It just came back on after an hour and a half. I'm going to go lock the chickens in for the night, then go to bed. I quit.

Just a quick visit to say Hello!

CynB, it's amazing the similarities between our hubbies and their medical issues. I hope many of Col's get sorted out and hoping the next 3 injections make a marked improvement in his vision!

Heidi, I'm so glad your lawn mower is back and working. You got a lot of mowing done. You're right - probably will need to do it again in several days. I hope you're taking care of yourself and hope your ear is improving.

Off to bed for me. Thinking of Everyone and sending healing energy, positive thoughts, , prayers and {{{{{HUGS}}}}} for All!

Good and fun news about Imp and Spooky. I hope the cats and kitten bring lots of enjoyment! Oh, Heidi! What a day you had with Robert. I'm glad you're home safely and heading to bed.

CynB, I hope you and Col find some enjoyable and close-to-home places to get away for a few days at a time!

Just a quick Hello and Good Night! Sending healing energy, {{{{{HUGS}}}}}, prayers, positive thoughts, and for Everyone!

London was showing what looks like the very early stages of meningeal worm, so I asked Mike the Vet to check her and treat her today. London is easy to treat because of her stubborn streak. As soon as you try to do anything with her, she stubbornly lays down and refuses to move. When you catch it very early, before they go down (like Chloe did) the chance of recovery is VERY high.

Mike got to see the turkey poults today. He's never seen turkey poults before, and thought they were adorable.

I hope you and Mike got London treated early enough, Heidi!

Now I need to find pictures of turkey poults.

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

These poults are colorful. The Black Spanish poults are black with white faces, the Blue Slates are silvery gray and the Bourbon Reds are tan colored.

Strange thing happened today. We found 2 more kittens. These were in the hay barn. One is a calico and one is a tortoiseshell. So both are females. It appears that Mon has stopped caring for the 3 kittens, because these 2 females and Spooky, the black male, were crying loudly, and are no longer looking well fed. So all three are at the Vet Clinic for a few days, being fed, rehydrated and checked out. Spooky had an abcess on his neck. I'll bring them home in a few days once we know they're healthy, and they've learned to eat and drink food provided by humans. I'll have to keep them in the barn where the dogs can't reach them.

Poor little kittens but so lucky you have found them. How many cats will that make Heidi? Hope London is clear of the worm and you were able to catch it in time. Is there any inoculation the alpacas can have against this parasite? Have never seen a poult before - like all baby animals, they are very cute.
Time has been extended until 3/9 where we are staying- glad for that as spine injection last Friday has made walking even more difficult and I have also somehow sprained my ankle on that side - don't know how that happened. Moving accommodation would be very difficult.
In full lockdown again - hubby and no. 3 son just had their very quiet birthdays - we will have a family picnic when this is all over - so looking forward to it. No.3 son still here from Darwin - he will have to go into quarantine for 2 weeks when he returns.
Hope everyone stays well, cheers for now.

London is doing very well. We caught it in time before there was any permanent neurological damage.

I visited the kittens at the Vet Clinic today. Mike has them on a special recovery diet. They're eating well, fortunately. They were acting like they were starving. They haven't learned to poop or pee on their own yet, so Mike is having to teach them that, too. Once they know how to do that, and are down to 3 feedings a day, they'll come back here.
Once they're home, it'll make 7 cats. Only Inky and Gremlin will be feral.

I FINALLY finished anchoring the new corral panels to the main barn supports this morning. Now it's stupid-cow-proof! We'll be working cattle in about 2 weeks. Just weaning some of Mike's calves, but I want to make sure everything holds up. I've been working on this job slowly because of the extreme heat and humidity, and because of the ear infection.

Midge.... I wish we would go in lockdown in the USA to stop the COVID spread, but we can't even convince half the population (Republicans who think the pandemic is political, not real) to social distance, wear masks and get vaccinated. That's why the current outbreak here is worse than it's ever been. And the covidiots don't care that the Delta variant is highly contagious to children (Trump told his followers that children were immune to Covid-19, and they still believe him!). The hospitals in the southern states have no more hospital beds left for children. They're full with children with the Delta variant. And it's racing through schools that have re-opened and aren't following CDC guidelines.