Quote:

---

Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:
That was prodigious amount of work, SIX.
What an improvement!
And for so little $$!

You're an inspiration.

---

Been MIA for a few days. Went out with my dad and one of my brothers the other night then went to my grandma's to dehoard the entire 2nd floor except for my aunt's room.

She's got a full garage to throw away again. I couldn't believe there was more junk up there than there was in the basement.



--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:
That was prodigious amount of work, SIX.
What an improvement!
And for so little $$!

You're an inspiration.

---

Been MIA for a few days. Went out with my dad and one of my brothers the other night then went to my grandma's to dehoard the entire 2nd floor except for my aunt's room.

She's got a full garage to throw away again. I couldn't believe there was more junk up there than there was in the basement.



--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

---

Yes, I wa a bit worried when you didn't show up, like I would be worried if BRENDA didn't show up. I should have known you didn't need to be worried about, but my imagination sometimes runs away with me.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Oh, don't feel guilty, SIX! I have good old-fashioned Catholic guilt trained into me. If I slack off too much, my conscience starts bothering me.

---

I was never confirmed, but I grew up with a lot of it myself. I actually do have quite a lot to feel guilty about from my past, but there's no sense in dwelling on it. Onward and upward.

Thanks for taking that burden off of me though.

Quote:

---

Also, I get a charge out of "getting things done". I think I get my dopamine burst when I can dust my hands, look around and say There! That's done! I still get boost whenever I open my (recently defrosted and re-organized) meatlocker.

---

Yeah. It's really a good feeling. It's just too bad I can't find enjoyment in the process when I'm doing the chore rituals as I do when I'm making something.

Quote:

---

It sounds like you've really making big improvements in other people's lives. Good on you!

---

I'm trying to. It's certainly a better way to spend my free time than what I used to do with it.

Quote:

---

It's a huge relief to most people* to have their surrounding simplified bc every unnecessary item kind of tugs at attention. One of the happiest times of my left was in the few months before we moved to CA- I had to stay bck to sell our house, and sold off almost everything and packed up the rest. For a while I slept on a sleeping bag on the bedroom floor and ate out of one pot, one cup, one bowl, a spoon and a knife. No car: I walked to work. My life was really, really simple.

---

Simplicity is nice. I still have way too much crap myself. I think it's one of the things that is really pushing me to get things done right now though. A lot of that "crap" is actually good things to use in my house, but as long as it's just sitting there on shelves in my garage or on platforms in my basement it's just crap.

My ultimate goal is to have this entire house restored and only have enough stuff filling it that would fit in any one of the 1 bedroom apartments I've ever rented.

I know that my aunt is THRILLED about this. She actually told me that she finds comfort in the empty rooms, and that she's never going to accumulate stuff in her new place. Noble goal, and definitely not the words of a hoarder. I wish her luck with that.

Quote:

---

*Unless that person is a hoarder, which is it's own special pathology.

---

Yeah... My grandma is though. I would never have even attempted this even just 5 years ago when her short term memory was still sharp and she got around a lot easier. My aunt wasn't worried about her seeing us taking anything out, but I told her to just pack the junk that was hers in bags and just stay out of my way while bringing everything out to the garage except for the few times I needed her help with larger furniture. I didn't want my grandma seeing any of that making its way outside. She would have died if she saw that I dismantled an admittedly really nice dresser that was somehow still in good shape just to take it down without killing ourselves. Sure, my aunt is right... even if she saw it she would probably forget about it 5 minutes later, but I don't want any of this to bring any emotional pain to my grandma for even a split second.

Fortunately, I DID take the top of that dresser and three more slabs of wood from it back home with me. They're the nicest pieces of wood I've had in that garage so far. Even though I don't have current plans for them, I will throw out some of my other saved wood to make room for them. Like the small shelf I still had left that I said I could make a breadboard out of, the 3 slabs from the bottom of the dresser and in between the drawers are made the same, but much larger. I'll have to figure out something really nice to do with them. They're way too good to be making something like garage shelves out of.


--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Just a Sunday around me. Nothing happening. My one day to just sit down and not do much of anything.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I hate climbing chairs to replace light bulbs.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Just a Sunday around me. Nothing happening. My one day to just sit down and not do much of anything.

---

I think my "day' to do nothing was Thursday.
Oh, and Friday and Saturday!

Thursday I was pooped out from pushing myself.
But Friday and Saturday were due to infusion, I think. Fatigue is a side effect.
Also, I'm still anemic. I'll try taking iron, that might help.

A piece of GOOD news ... even tho I was busting ass outside and sweating like crazy, it didn't make my kidneys worse. So as long as I stay hydrated and make sure to get enough salt, I can tolerate outdoor work.

So today I managed an hour of "yard"work, even tho is was just raking up under pine trees and sweeping up the driveway and walkway. It hasn't been done in I don't know HOW long, months and months, but still I was surprised to fill up a whole big binful.

There! That's done!

Tomorrow I'll water the veggies, walk the dog, and tackle a bit more front-yard cleanup, altho I haven't decided exactly where. I'll pick a small spot that I can finish in an hour ... or less.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I hate climbing chairs to replace light bulbs.

---

Me too.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I hate climbing chairs to replace light bulbs.

---

Me too.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Yeah and they always blow in the evening and it was a main light that I use.

Got a replacement bulb in and turned it on to find out the replacement bulb was dead. So I had to go fishing for another bulb. Climbed back up on the chair after having just climbed down, put the next bulb I found in and got back down. Turned on the light and it worked. Decided to check the other bulbs in that box and found that a couple of others could be dead too. So put them aside to go to recycling.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SignyM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I hate climbing chairs to replace light bulbs.

---

Me too.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Yeah and they always blow in the evening and it was a main light that I use.

Got a replacement bulb in and turned it on to find out the replacement bulb was dead. So I had to go fishing for another bulb. Climbed back up on the chair after having just climbed down, put the next bulb I found in and got back down. Turned on the light and it worked. Decided to check the other bulbs in that box and found that a couple of others could be dead too. So put them aside to go to recycling.

---

Don't you hate it when that happens?

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
New washers and driers though?

I think you were the big winner today.



--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Back from my walk on a nice sunny day. Temp is around 76F. Not too hot for me.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Back from my walk on a nice sunny day. Temp is around 76F. Not too hot for me.

---

Oh, that sounded lovely!

*****

For the first time in weeks, my bug bites didn't wake me up with itches. Mother Nature sometimes has a few tricks up her sleeve. It's not all bunnies and bluebirds.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I am off to mah jong tomorrow. Hope I have better luck than I have had.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
I am off to mah jong tomorrow. Hope I have better luck than I have had.

---

I'll hope with you!


-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Back from mah jong and all done for today. Just having a sit down right now.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Back from mah jong and all done for today. Just having a sit down right now.

---

I don't know WHAT happened, but I couldn't fall asleep until 5AM! So I took the time to do much-needed paperwork, which didn't go very smoothly bc I was too sleepy to do a good job. Well, better luck with tonight's sleep!

I DID pick the first three zucchini today. I think I can remove that from my shopping list for the foreseeable future.

Well, early day tomorrow. I'll need to water the garden before I leave so the veggies don't croak.

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SignyM:
Wattle?

---

Our national emblem. A flowering tree that produces masses of yellow flowers late winter and early spring.

Quote:

---

We're watching a mystery series called Dr Blake. It's kind of a whodunnit taking place in 1950s Ballarat. It looks lovely.

---

Craig Mclaughlin has been in the news lately - not coming off as a lovely chappie.

Quote:

---

But every now and again they shoot a scene that makes me realize how ... different Australia is. A forest of eucalyptus. A night sky with NO familiar constellations!

It looks, at times, alien. But to you Australia is home, and maybe California or New York would seem strange.

---

It probably does seem strange when you first visit, the landscapes can be very different to North America and Europe. But it's also a big continent and lots of variety. For example, where I live there are enormous mountain ash forests, temperate rainforest in fact, that is probably more like where you live than someone who lives in Alice Springs (dead centre). At the moment there is high rainfall throughout lots of Australia, and catastrophic floods up north.

America, on the surface, doesn't seem so strange. we have been saturated with your media for many years. I think we sometimes forget how different America is to us because of it, and things like the stance on abortion and gun laws, and well Trump, seems so alien to us. Culturally we are very different countries. Australians also travel a lot out of country, a lot more than Americans it would appear. We get better holiday conditions and most of us are drawn to see other places outside of our far away Island.

Quote:

---

I'm very attuned to the specifics of where I live: the sky,the weather, the plants,the architecture. It took me forever to see the beautiful in the LA area .. of course, Los Angeles is in many ways a remarkably ugly place. I wonder what you would think of California.

---

I actually went to California many years ago, and had a brief and fun stop over in LA. I did the touristy things and I enjoyed it. If I ever go to the States again, I would go to New York and then visit some of your famous national parks like Yosemite. I love hiking so I would pick a multi day hike. I am, however, quite terrified of your bears.

Quote:

---

Lockdowns, ugh. Only very strict lockdowns actually work, and only a place like China could make them work. Fortunately the last few iterations of Covid have mutated in the direction that many viruses mutate: more infectious but less lethal. Family has escaped it so far, altho at this point the virus has mutated so far from it's original strain that the vaccine doesn't work anymore. When I was on chemo we all wore N95s to go anywhere. I'm seriously thinking of relaxing that to paper masks which, really, are just a fiction. Haven't quite decided yet

---

Well it kept the virus under control while the vaccines were developed and saved loads of lives. It was hard going at times, but I was lucky and still able to work, so part of me enjoyed the quieter life.

Quote:

---

Maybe we should carry this on in another thread? I'm really curious what you think of us rattling China's cage over Taiwan bc if any happens over it, Australia would be involved for sure. Also, yanno,just what's been happening with you, your family and all. I'm sure a lot has happened over the past few years.

---

I am actually not keeping up with much in the US these days, Roe V Wade was all over the news here so hard to avoid, and the endless gun violence seems horrific, but apart from that - not so much. I'm working and studying and busy, getting older and not sure about wiser ;}

I stick my head in here every now and then, but it's not like the old days when some really good discussions were to be had. I like the Garden thread so will pop in there from time to time.

:)

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:
Well, I'll copy this into the garden thread, then, and we can start from that.

Studying? Whatare you studying?

What kind of work do you do?

True, that: your death toll percent-wise was MUCH lower than ours. Was part of your strategy border control? Bc being in the middle of an ocean makes it easier to isolate incoming people. We have SO MANY flowing thru our borders, sampling shows that Covid was established here even b4 we knew it was a problem in China. I hear that Australia doesn't have rabies, and New Zealand doesn't even have scrapie or mad cow disease.

---

-----------
Pity would be no more,
If we did not MAKE someone poor - William Blake

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
Just over 12 months ago a huge storm hit this area, with cyclonic speed winds. The winds came from a direction that was not usual and destroyed about 80 houses. Many residents were left without power or mobile phone access for weeks - in the dead of winter.

Climate disasters, supply issues due to COVID have meant that 12 months on, many houses have yet to be rebuilt and some residents will not be able to reinsure their homes.

Here is a short video on what happened if you are interested in my neck of the woods.

htt p://

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Magonsdaughter:
Just over 12 months ago a huge storm hit this area, with cyclonic speed winds. The winds came from a direction that was not usual and destroyed about 80 houses. Many residents were left without power or mobile phone access for weeks - in the dead of winter.

Climate disasters, supply issues due to COVID have meant that 12 months on, many houses have yet to be rebuilt and some residents will not be able to reinsure their homes.

Here is a short video on what happened if you are interested in my neck of the woods.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Haven't really felt myself for a few days, so I've stayed out of the Garden...

It's been a ROUGH week.

Pretty sure I swallowed myself some pretty toxic bacteria on Monday. I woke up to about 2% water pressure in my house and it took about 15 minutes to fill my coffee pot. I was going to get some tools out of the garage to detach a water meter that was recently installed that I thought might have had some blockage, but saw the whole city lined up on my street. The pipes busted in the street in about 6 places and my frontage looked like footage from the BP oil spill. All that reclaimed water just rushing out and right back down into the sewer system.

To my surprise, by the time I'd gotten back home that night the problem was fixed, but we had a "Don't drink the water until further notice" in place. It was only then that it occured to me that I'd drank an entire pot of coffee that was brewed from whatever Lovecraftian Horror that came out of the tap that morning. Oh well. I felt fine. No harm, no foul.

That was until I woke up very early Tuesday morning to go to the bathroom...

When I stood up I immediately had vertigo, and right before the throbbing head pain came on I was induced with the worst chills I'd ever experience in my life... in a house that was in the mid 70 degrees. I put on a hoodie and sweat pants and spent the next 24 hours under two blankets, writhing in misery from the pain that seemed to be everywhere all at once, but most notably the ceaseless throbbing pain in my head. I never knew what a headache was until that night. I finally knew the fever broke after I woke up early Wednesday morning and my clothes were saturated in sweat.

And that's when I remember the delusions. I was confident I had cancer. At one point, I was even convinced that somebody had purposefully poisoned the water and was trying to kill me. Obviously the latter is ridiculous. Hopefully the former is as well.

Wednesday wasn't great, but after what I went through on Tuesday anything felt amazing. Joint pain was still around, and my skin was super sensitive all over and mildy hurt to the touch. Especially on my head and my back. Even today, I still have slight sensitivity on the skin of my lower back.

There was never any coughing at all. Some mucus buildup from Wednesday onward, but nothing I'm concerned about. Appetite has been almost non existant for days, although I haven't had a problem forcing myself to eat.

Wednesday night through last night was almost a turn for the worse in a way though since I was seriously backed up. It was to the point that I had to take shallow breaths because it hurt to take deep ones with all that pressure in the abdomen. I barely got any sleep for about 36 hours because of the discomfort.

That's not a problem today though. More in line with what you would expect from a bacterial infection, I've had an appointment with Mr. John about a half dozen times so far this morning.

Let's just say that I'm not really finding much joy out of today either, but at least most of my strength seems to be back, the dizziness is gone, most of the pain is gone, and it seems like my body is finally ready to exorcise whatever is left of the unknown microscopic demons that possessed me through that foul batch of coffee.



--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by SIGNYM:
I haven't seen this until now. Sometimes I just don't scroll up.

Wow, you must have gotten one giant innoculation with some unfriendly organism! I would be on the lookout for parasites if you have continuing problems. But it does sound bacterial.

Fever headaches, ugh! They're the worst!

How are you now?

---

Quote:

---

Additionally, sodium needs glucose in order to be properly absorbed. This is why ORS contains both glucose and sodium.

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by 6IXSTRINGJACK:
Thanks for the tips.

--------------------------------------------------

Falsus in unum, falsus in omnibus

---

Quote:

---

Call your family doctor if you or a loved one:
Has had diarrhea for 24 hours or more
Is irritable or disoriented and much sleepier or less active than usual
Can't keep down fluids
Has bloody or black stool

---

Quote:

---

Originally posted by Brenda:
Just a Sunday around me.

---