I think the time has come for the Quest for the Cow's Clothes. I feel fat today and my swimsuit is literally dying (I'm only in the pool three times every week!). It's more than kind of embarrassing. It's the Saggy Baggy Elephant suit and the pool chlorine is bleaching the color out of it. Not to mention what I'm afraid is going to fall out of it one day in front of those teenage lifeguards. It could scar them emotionally for life. That being said, this is the wrong time to buy a suit, yet this can't wait. So, for the first time ever, I will be looking online to buy a swimsuit. It is a scary proposition; it has to be a boy-leg, or skirted, because I don't shave down there - too much irritation. Also, I'd like this one to not be so...low cut. I'm the bustiest gal in my swim class and I really feel conspicuous.
Enough of that horror show (sorry for any uncomfortable mental images). Really, the fat despair comes from my doctor's visit today. I have GAINED eight pounds. I feel so gross. I've been going to water aerobics three times a week, doing yoga three times a week, and eating more fruits and veggies. I feel better, especially in my back, but really? Couldn't I have gone down a little bit? So today I do not feel very good about myself. And here I thought last week that my face looked thinner! Deception!
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
I think I need to make a statement before proceeding with the day's events. Things that I post, like yesterday's pity party, are not cause for alarm. Also, Ken being sick, while sad and not pleasant for him, was not a catastrophic event. He's better. It was only a couple of days. Some kind of bug. If I have made these things seem like something to worry over, I apologize. I am a drama queen (yes, I admitted it) and like all authors and journalists...I realize that drama sells (ROFL). So...yes, I am tired a lot, but much of that is my own darn fault. I stay up late reading or playing some stupid game, or doing the dishes (or whatever) that I procrastinated until the last minute with. Ken also tells me I take an hour to get ready for bed. I also overbook myself because for some reason I like to be in constant frenetic motion. Then I don't feel so lazy, nor bad because my house is a wreak - hey, I'm busy! It also makes me feel important and we know this Michele has an ego. Thanks for the concern, I love you for worrying so about me, but if something is really wrong, maybe I'll put up a warning sign. If I remember. Otherwise, I'm just documenting the Bolton family version of normal, which is nothing like yours (or anyone elses).
So, having said that...can I safely say that I didn't have yoga today and I didn't have water aerobics yesterday or last Friday and that it's been several days without exercise or stretching and my neck, back, and possible hand neuropathy (don't panic!) are driving me crazy. At least in my old age I've learned the value of exercise, if not diet (see Monday). I look forward to water aerobics AND yoga tomorrow (please oh please).
Taking Jonathan to the airport for class today, I got to meet his instructor, Mr. Hall. He was so nice and said Jonathan was a great contribution to the class. He was very confident that Jonathan would be able to pass this class and next years and begin working on base. He also invited me to come and visit the class at any time. I should...if only to take pictures.
I tried a new dish out today to use up a spaghetti squash I'd received through Bountiful Baskets. It was a casserole bake with lots of veggies, some cheese...and no meat. That is a travesty as far as Jonathan is concerned. He ate it, but said it needed beef! That kid! Analiese ate it and said it wasn't bad, even though it had tomatoes and bell peppers in it (but she didn't have seconds). Ken didn't like it, but he told me not long ago that he really didn't like vegetables. To which I did, and still do, reply, "Too bad." I had seconds; it tasted good!
Jonathan went tonight to 4H Air Rifle and Pistol Shooting. He got to do pistol shooting for the first time tonight (only kids over 12 can do it). He and his friend David had a great time trying out guns and trying to hit targets. It looks much harder to do it with one hand unsupported. There's a competition this Saturday 95 miles north of here and then the next one will be in December here in Altus. Whether he goes or not Saturday, I'm not sure. They said he could catch a ride with them.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
Our ward has it's own weatherman. Really, he belongs to the Air Force Base, but, like I told his wife yesterday, he's handy to have around. Because a big cold front is headed our way, accompanied by rain, sometime early Friday. No, we are not expecting snow. Apparently we get little of that here. Instead, we get ice storms which can be much worse. Lest you think I am panicking, I will tell you that for the most part we feel prepared. We have our generator and gasoline for it, I'm getting extra water today, and I got a bunch of canned foods the last time I was at Sam's. We have three gas heaters and a gas fireplace in the house, a kerosene lantern, a battery-powered lantern, a 100-hour candle, and flashlights in every room. Oh, and lots of blankets, even for the bunnies. Here you have to be prepared, year-round, not for eventualities, but near certainties. But I don't think I'm going to be doing a lot of driving at first, if I can avoid it. I've driven in snow a little, and don't like it. Ice has me a bit nervous. Luckily, if I need it, there's a grocery store across the street!
Did you know that coconuts can go bad? I do! I had an old one and a not-so-old one. Went to open the old one and - ugh! - black fuzzy stuff! Luckily the newer one was bigger (and not bad). You wonder, how did I open that big boy? A hammer. Have you ever had to wash a hammer? To wash coconut off of a hammer? Lots of new experiences. What am I doing with it? Making coconut milk. Luckily, Bountiful Baskets often posts on FB ideas for using your produce. So I'm making coconut milk. The humor of the experience has not escaped me - making coconut milk in my OK kitchen in November. Thinking of using it instead of (or with) milk to make Coconut Horchata! Jonathan agrees that that sounds scrumptious! As a side note: rabbits are totally uninterested in coconut. Just an observation.
As if tackling a coconut today wasn't enough, I decided I had time to deal with one of my Cinderella pumpkins. If you saw the Halloween picture of my hearth, you saw two pumpkins on either side of the fireplace. Those are Cinderella pumpkins - good for eating/baking. So, not following in my mother's footsteps (she once tried to PEEL a pumpkin), I cut one open into four pieces, scraped out the seeds and gunk, and placed them face-down on a cookie sheet where I baked it for about an hour (it could have used a bit more time, it was a big pumpkin). Then I let it cool a bit, scraped out the flesh and pureed it and bagged it into 2-cup bags (about the amount in a can). Guess how many 2-cup bags of pumpkin I now have? SIX!!! And that's just the first pumpkin! Guess what kind of bread everyone here is getting for Christmas?
Thursday, November 21, 2013
The morning was beautiful - sunshiny and warm with a few fringes of clouds ringing the sky. Storm coming? No way!
I drove Jonathan to class at mid-day and ran my storm preparations anyway. In Wal-Mart I saw people just going about their regular shopping runs. Only I was acting like a prepper. California paranoia again? Weather reports are constantly changing around here. Maybe this was all for nothing. But better prepared than not...
By the time I came out of the second store, the wind had picked up. Seriously. The birds were pretty much gone (and lately we've had scads of them sitting on buildings and power lines), and it was the leaves that were flying in whirls and gusts. Still, it was warm. Can't freeze anything in that!
Two-thirty came and I went to go pick up Jonathan with Analiese in tow. It was still windy, but I left my jacket in the house thinking it was still nice outside in spite of everything. Wrong...that wind was turning cold; arctic cold. Maybe there was something in that weather report after all.
The rest of today was windy and cold, but none of that rain that was predicted came. Just as well. We had soup for dinner (good call!) and, after one foray into the wind (I told Analiese that I felt like I was auditioning for the part of Dorothy in the new Wizard of Oz) for tithing settlement, we settled down into blankets and covers to sleep warm & safe.
Friday, November 22, 2013
Pretty much all of the leaves are off of the trees. The wind did a good job. Still really cold. Around devotional time, as we're sitting in the living room, I heard clicking on the window. It was starting to rain, but it wasn't pure rain. There was some ice in. Before long, there's lots of clicking, and then our yards are covered with small ice particles. Not snow, ice. It drifts like sand, but doesn't stick.
And it kept coming and coming. Ken came home from work early and just in time to take Jonathan to class. Thank heavens! I know nothing about driving in icy conditions and am not eager to start. Luckily, too, a classmate brought him home so neither one of us had to go out and get him. Plus the classmate has 4-wheel drive!
We had a free Redbox rental, so Ken wanted to get a movie. The nearest Redbox is next to the United, only right around the corner from us. We bundled up and walked out there, carefully picking our way around the ice. Well, I was carefully picking; Ken was more confident. I haven't had to walk through that stuff since Boston - nearly 20 years ago. And I still don't like it! I have slid and fell enough times on ice to last a lifetime; I am really not eager to repeat the past. I slipped a little to and from the Redbox, holding tightly onto Ken's arm.
Saturday, November 23, 2013
Storm is over, but ice and cold remain. Everything is either crunchy or slippery. The kids are fascinated with the icicles that rim the house. Jonathan likes to crunch through the ice to the ground. As we've had to go to the garage and back, I let him trailblaze and follow where he's opened the path for me. He certainly bundles up, wearing the scarf I just crocheted for him in camo colors. I wanted to wait until Christmas, but he needed it now, I guess.
All day today was drip, crack, drip. I had one little errand to run so I HAD to go out in the car, but the roads are all free of ice, as are most of the sidewalks. Even our front yard looked fairly ice-free late this afternoon. But snow is expected tomorrow, so this won't last.
I am told by locals that this weather is a bit early this year. Normally, they don't have ice and snow hit until December or January. I hope it means more wet and water - we could sure use that!
Sunday, November 24, 2013
I awoke to a winter wonderland (for real - the kids didn't think the ice, but the snow definitely is!). Quietly falling, the snow was already at least two inches on the ground. Analiese is wondering...is there enough for snow angels (yes)...a snow fight (yes)...a snowman (yes).
Church has been cancelled. I guess people here don't drive well on snow and ice (they panic like S. Californian's do with rain). We were supposed to take an investigator to church and we notified the missionaries (they don't get Facebook, which is where I found out). Also, I was supposed to be involved in all three meetings: Sacrament Meeting - chorister, Sunday School - teaching Analiese's class, Relief Society - playing piano. I told the kids we would still have our own private devotional; it's still the Sabbath.
I let the kids play outside this morning, even though it was Sunday. I hear that these snow storms are rare (and this early, too)! They had so much fun, Jonathan building a snow fort and Analiese trying to make a snowman (snow wasn't sticking), but settling for a snowangel instead. I took a lot of photos and a video, you'll have to look for it on Facebook. But I'm including a couple of shots here. They finished their snow fun with hot chocolate and spending the rest of the day cozy, watching movies and playing games. Other than a little chill, I think they loved it!
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