31 Jan, Sunday: Up, exercised, breakfasted, and late to church. Well, our car told us it was 9:57, but the pastor was already conducting service when we entered. We invited Chris and Connie to brunch at the Yacht Club, and it was indeed much fun to talk Iowa with them. (That is a dialect of Midwestern.)
30 Jan: Yikes! Only one more day to think of a blog title for the month of February, the I love you ❤️ month. Amazing, last night we got to bed at midnight, and this morning we are up, exercised, fed and working at 10:04. Our first walk this morning was foreshortened by a drizzle, and since more rain is forecast within an hour, we decided that retreat was appropriate. We will try again later, after the rain threat diminishes.
29 Jan: Earlier to bed (meaning before midnight) made us earlier to rise ?? i.e. before 10 AM ?? Yes, indeed !! I am eating breakfast at 10:42 this morning. We made a trip to the Enterprise car rental to renew Cynthia's steed and stopped for groceries on the return. Then we walked to the lake, and Ron taught Cynthia how to bake a sweet potato in a ZipLock bag. Ron's dinner was cornbread, so he is nibbling on shredded wheat before retiring after Cynthia let him play with the Bankston Y-DNA spreadsheet from FTDNA. The index is finally finished, but there are a few more projects before Ron can be done with Volume 7. But now it is time for bed.
28 Jan: Awake, exercised, fed twice and walked, we are now awaiting our 15 minutes of Podcast "fame." Cynthia's cell phone didn't ring; apparently thought it was a robot call, so NoMoRoBo blocked it. They will try to find me again tomorrow. We walked for the second time today to the Cafe on the Green (aka Caddy Shack) for salmon and a potato. We thank God for lots of everything.
27 Jan: Another day, just like the other day: awaken, exercise, eat, work on genealogy, walk, eat, work on genealogy, walk, brush teeth, sleep. The new wrinkle is that we discovered that our newly acquired "friend" Margie is a poop. She had the construction guys blockade our walking path past the construction site. As I always say, "I trust everyone." And now I trust Margie to be an evil-spirited bitch who will gladly stab an older person in the back to prove that she is in charge. Ron is being interviewed about genealogy tomorrow at 2:35 CST by PBN, a podcast business network.
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| Cynthia takes photogenic photos |
26 Jan: And Ron is back to work on the index after four days off for the package that was supposed to take only one day. Indexing is going well, I am proofing the P's now, not too much further. It was great fun to meet Chris from Iowa City; he and his wife, Connie, will join us for brunch on Sunday. Cynthia treated herself to a pedicure and manicure (simultaneously) this afternoon after our mandatory daily walk. Ron did rock maintenance, we likely spotted the bald-eagles nest with two babies, although we didn’t see the babies. The deer seem very young and small. Recently, we were scolded by a gander protecting two females. After the walk, we ate at Magnolia Diner and shopped for grocery resupply with good success. Cynthia loves the lovely fleurs. The newspaper says that three places in the county are dispensing covid vaccine. Now Ron needs to eat his evening pills and get in another walk with compost.
25 Jan: The days are really rushing by recently, but we still Thank God for every one of them. Color radar showed an intense storm (colored yellows and reds) passing directly over us, and all we got was a brief shower. But we did get to the pharmacy to pick up Ron’s meds. We walked to the lakeshore once and are about to go for a shorter walk before dark. Ron has enjoyed great success in completing (and sending) the Kampe package to the Swedish Colonial Society member.
24 Jan, Sunday: We awakened late and had to rush to get to church on time. Brunch at the Yacht Club was as good as usual recently, and we embarked upon a walk about 1:30 despite a 2:00 forecast of a shower. We were lucky to stay dry for our entire walk. Ron finished his work on the next package but failed to walk in the evening and consequently slept no more than 45 minutes between trips to the bathroom all night. On the other hand, we got to bed at 10 PM and got out of bed at 8 AM, so he feels fairly well rested despite all the nighttime exercise - and his weight was less in the morning: 176 pounds. :) :)
23 Jan: Is supposed to rain after dark this evening, so we are up, exercised, fed and ready (almost) to walk early, i.e. before noon. We need to reprovision the larder today: blueberries, walnuts, frozen mango, bananas are absolutely essential, and we did accomplish that. Since we were out and about early, we decided to enjoy an egg white veggie omelet at Magnolia Diner before shopping, and we did find all above-mentioned items except for the frozen mango and frozen blueberries. We managed a second walk, returning just after dark, so we feel very virtuous.
22 Jan: And it has been another good day of exercises, oatmeal and walking. Cynthia received the second installment of Y-DNA analysis done by Maurice Gleeson, a highly reputed specialist, so she is delighted with what she is discovering about her Leas of Caswell County. Ron spent the entire day working on the next package ordered from the Swedish Colonial Society and was delighted to get it nearly completed. Ron had read that he could safely microwave a sweet potato in a ZipLock bag at lower power settings, and we are happy to report that it turned out delicious. It only took 3 installments of 4 minutes each at half power. But now it is time for another walk.
21 Jan: Cynthia’s renewed passport arrived, just as additional documents (proving that she really is who she says she is) arrive today at the passport office in VA. This was a headache... advice: don’t lose your passport. It is a dreary, rainy day. Ron is working on the index, dressed warmer in a down jacket, a reversal of our roles having Cynthia always cold and Ron over-heated. Other changes, Cynthia deleted Facebook, social media, and she won’t click on MainStreamMedia sites. The corrupt media is laying off so-called journalists by the thousands, and thusly, many MSM will crash in 2021. We walked in mid-afternoon drizzle after avoiding earlier all-day drizzle, then we decided to eat salmon again at the Cafe on the Green, so we ended up with a 6-mile walk today. Ron is about to go out for his usual nightcap walk since the color radar says that the rain & drizzle should have departed by now. Except it wasn't; and Ron got wet.
20 Jan: Up, exercised, fed, and working on index by 11 AM. Early birds we are not, but we did manage to walk to the lake twice this afternoon. We agreed that we miss the pipeline crew. Ron walked again at 9:30, so we were not early to bed.
19 Jan: Two great walks, our mileage totaled 7.9 miles. Dinner at the Cafe on the Green outdoors was pleasant, plus we enjoyed visiting with folks from Minnesota. And Ron is late taking his evening pills and getting out for the bedtime walk. Cynthia has dutifully reminded him a couple of times. Ain't love grand !!
18 Jan: Another Day, another dollar three eighty. On our usual daily walk to the lake we again found Margie enjoying the pleasant weather with more gardening. Another small world coincidence is that her husband is named Ron, but he stumbled once in Galveston and accidentally threw Margie off a curb face down into the street. Cynthia is happy that she holds my hand since I seldom stumble. And Cynthia is happy that the worst part of the tax preparation is organized and off to the CPA. Audiologist appointment at three PM, and the audiologist passed with flying colors, turning volume down and clarity up. Ron started his second late evening walk at 11 PM, so didn't get to bed until nearly 1 AM.
17 Jan, Sunday: Fooey! Cynthia wrote extensively about Sunday worship, brunch, the pleasant walk, meeting Margie. And it all failed to upload. Good night. Margie looked very familiar to both of us for different reasons. Cynthia and Margie remembered a chance encounter at Toasted yolk when Margie was with her mother. Much later Cynthia remembered that Margie was the landscaper for the house on Northwood Drive. Then a day later Ron also remembered seeing her as the landscaper at Northwood.
16 Jan: Another day, more exercises, more oatmeal, and Cynthia hurried out the door at 10:30 for hair repair. We walked once to the lake and were amused with the thought of pipeline pigs. Close to the lake we met a very pleasant guy practicing his golf named Rob, who knows both Jon and Paul. Ron is off again at 9:38 for one more walk & talk. Goodnight.
15 Jan: It is another day much like any other: exercises, oatmeal, computers, and walking. Ron is making good progress with his indexing, and Cynthia is attacking her tax records. Ron walked a second time at 11:09 and was home at 12:10, after Cynthia was asleep.
14 Jan: Another tomorrow, thank God. We walked early and were surprised that it was so warm so quickly. Now we are eating before going to LabCorps for Cynthia's labs. After the labs we returned to the storage locker for the paper shredder, an important instrument for financial papers.
13 Jan: Again tomorrow. Where does the time go? We are happy to report that we are still having fun even though our time vanishes so quickly every day. Blasted scale showed 177.4 this morning after extended coaxing. Blood pressure 91/61 at pulse of 62, so it is staying low despite reduction of medicines. Another good day with too much to do. Just before dark we walked to the Golf Club for dinner of salmon and potatoes. Walking home on the inky dark golf cart paths was not Ron's best idea, but we survived.
12 Jan: Ron cannot keep up with this constant changing of the days. here is yet another tomorrow. This morning that blasted scale reported a higher weight instead of a lower one. I may have to bribe the scale, but I did reduce consumption throughout the day, so perhaps that will help. We walked to the lake at noon (when it was a balmy 50 degrees). We had great plans to get the shovel out of the storage locker so that Ron can bury the compost (and Cynthia really, really wanted her battery powered, heated coat), but neither of us thought to bring keys with us --- so --- maybe tomorrow. We did resupply with most groceries, but Walmart had neither Jolly Time popcorn nor the desired Snyder pretzels nor the large bag of frozen blueberries. Again, maybe tomorrow. Ron is filling up on dry cornbread preparatory to his after dark additional walk to the lake (an additional 3 miles in an hour+).
11 Jan: Good grief, is it tomorrow again already? Yes, and we already walked to the lake and back once in 40 degree temperatures. Now Ron is back to work on his indexing. Then late afternoon a second, shorter, colder-feeling walk to the fitness center, and now at 9:30 Ron is going again to the lake since he is desperate to lose weight to afford buying more pretzels tomorrow. At 178 pounds, he is three pounds over his "ideal" body weight. Three pounds ... and the goal is so close - in one day he has sometimes dropped three pounds. Women should be so fortunate.
10 Jan, Sunday: We slept a lot last night. Ron laid down soon after dinner and was still in bed this morning at 9 AM when his pill alarm sounded. His blood pressure was 96/61 this morning, so it is a bit higher now. Our 11:30 breakfast brunch date with Jon and Tina felt incredibly close to breakfast oatmeal - because it was !! Brunch with Jon and Tina was lovely; they are massively excited that their home remodel will "soon" be completed - painters are to start tomorrow. Another strangely empty restaurant. Apparently lots of older folks are avoiding restaurants here now. It is a cold and rainy day, so we are unlikely to get our daily walk today. (And that forecast was indeed accurate until 7 PM.) But, as Cynthia loves to say, "Tomorrow is Another Day." We had SNOW !! It covered the rooftops and autos, but didn't stick on the ground around us. Elsewhere nearby they did have a coating on the grass.
9 Jan: Imagine our embarrassment trying to explain to the condo maintenance man that we broke the bed! Yes! And it happened while we were innocently taking our blood pressure. Honestly. No lie. The day is lovely! We had a great walk to the lake and back. Ron is working hard on the never-ending indexing of Volume 7. And soon we walk to the Yacht Club dinner. How cute to see video of baby Blaire walking at 9 1/2 months, hanging onto a chair as she circles it.
8 Jan: Gone already. Good grief, you just start working on the index and first thing you know it is time to go to bed again.
7 Jan: So this morning we need to pack everything back onto the motorcycle before Ron's 1 PM appointment with the electrophysiologist for his pacemaker reading. With luck it should have another five years of battery life remaining. 12:23 and ready to go to see the doctor. Another A+ doctor visit; yes indeed, 5 years left in battery. The ride home was quite chilly after we stopped at Jason's Deli in Conroe for salads and baked potatoes. Their salad bar is again open, but it is a big disappointment that the have no sweet potatoes. It was very amazing to see so few customers inside Jason's Deli. Once we arrived home Ron laid down to get warm and awakened 3 hours later. Cynthia is still feeling under the weather... so the plan for a major house cleaning blitz won't happen tomorrow. Perhaps because of the nap, but more likely it is compulsive behaviors that motivated Ron to stay up working on the index until 12:45 PM. Ouch.
6 Jan: And the day dawned beautifully here with marvelous colors in the clouds over Lake Conroe. And the color radar shows no rain in sight, no rain in the area until noon, so our ride will be comfortably dry and maybe even warm. Ron slept fine and lost two pounds by not munching shredded wheat all evening. The 60-mile ride to the medical center was delightful, especially since the Hardy Toll Road is so much less trafficked than I-45. Cynthia was not allowed inside the hospital to hold Ron's hand during the PET scan, so he had to go it alone. The results are astonishing. Ron has a beautiful palette of reds, pinks and yellows indicating adequate blood without any of those ugly greens and blues that previously indicated inadequate blood supply. So the stents are working, and his diet is keeping his arteries clear. Goodie. Now if we can just figure out how to get that blood pressure up (86/50 this morning). Dinner wasn't much since the medical center seems to be in lockdown, and we are staying in the Hilton to make tomorrow's 1 PM appointment with the electrophysiologist easy.
5 Jan: To ride or not to ride, that is the pressing question for tomorrow morning when Ron has his PET scan to see if his heart is more clogged or less clogged. Tomorrow's forecast calls for 40% to 70% chance of showers and thunderstorms. We've ridden in enough rain recently to be a bit cautious now, but we did ride "home" Monday rather than stay in the lockdown hotel. (By that I mean that their restaurant is closed for dine-in and, being full-service, their rooms are absent a microwave to heat our oatmeal and popcorn.) Oofta, the instructions for the PET scan say no carbs for 24 hours before the test, so Ron already screwed up by having mixed vegetables including carrots and corn before dinner. How is the poor guy going to sleep without his accustomed full stomach?
4 Jan: Our early AM appointments went well; we are certified alive by our doctors. By 1:30 we were eating lunch at the Toasted Yolk close to home. Ron forgot to look for his recommended DHEA supplement on the way home and had to search (and ask) at Walmart, Walgreens, and CVS before he actually located it at Kroger, two hours later.
3 Jan, Sunday: Church is locked down, so we didn't go, but we did enjoy a fun brunch at the Yacht Club with Karen, Steven, Samantha & spouses. We decided that traffic into the medical center would be lightest around 2 PM, but I-45 was a poor choice with heavy traffic and significant sunlight blinding the GPS. This would have been less stressful if Ron had checked the route prior to departure. Regardless, we arrived at the Hilton early enough to walk the entire perimeter of Rice Campus - five miles. (It is a BIG campus.) The hotel restaurant is carry-out only, so Cynthia ordered oatmeal for dinner. (It did not rate rave reviews.) Our appointment with Dr, Gould, our cardiologist, is 8 AM tomorrow morning.
2 Jan: Cynthia slept the clock around; we awoke to feel almost over our colds, and we had a lovely four-mile walk late morning. At six PM, we think sleep is a great idea.
1 Jan: A New Year, a New Day, and a New Us?? Yes, please! We caught colds traveling back to Montgomery (or perhaps passing through vacationing crowds in Fredericksburg). Cynthia asked Ron how he was feeling today. He replied that the cold is progressing. Worsening or better? Do you have a headache, she asked. Ron replied that he has a cute little headache, her name is Cynthia. And so a New Year begins. (Ron hereby goes on record as saying that she was the best little headache a guy could ever hope to have.)
