Trimming and Edging and Mowing, Oh my!

I stayed up late last night gluing the ends of the necklace (all six of them) and wrapping them with another piece. Then I left it to dry and went to bed. I listened to a delta brainwave CD after I laid down, and almost fell asleep before it was over.
In the morning, Chris got up before I did. I arose at 8 to drink water and read e-mail. My computer was running very slowly, so I closed a recently opened window, but that did not help much. I resumed watching the video in the next most recently opened window. I had to pause it at 9:35 to take my shower and get dressed. I chose a green dress to go with my new necklace. Chris came home from church about 10:15. I put stuff in my Sunday purse and put on my shoes. Then he drove me to church. I passed the chaplain in the hallway. I mentioned that Ms. Kim and I were working on “On Eagles Wings”. He talked about having another singing Sunday. I used the restroom one last time, then sat in my usual seat. The praise team was not feeling well, so the chaplain led some hymns instead. They were acapella. Then we passed the peace and had communion. The sermon was about the Israelites in the wilderness, complaining about the lack of water, or food. God chides them for complaining, them gives them manna and water from a rock.
After the service, So Young came over to examine my haircut and ask how I liked it. She wanted me to tell Chris she would cut his hair too. Ms. Pae said she was going to Ms. Kim's daughter's wedding. I think she wanted me to go, too. The chaplain had told everyone that Wes was leaving. So I said goodbye to him. Then I called Chris to come get me. I walked to the commissary and waited for him to arrive. We shopped for groceries together. There were a lot of people in the commissary and the line at the cash register went past the coconut milk in aisle two. We had brought bags, so I handed them to the young lad who was bagging groceries. Chris put a tip in the jar. Then we took our food to the car, and I drove us home. We put the food away, then we went outside so Chris could take my picture wearing my new necklace. Then I changed my clothes. Our neighbors wanted to edge their lawn, so I pulled out our mower and the edger attachment. I texted them that it was there. But not long after, they texted back that it was just a trimmer. I hunted up the instructions, which clearly indicated it was an edger as well. I fished out the string, and then attached it to the mower. I fired it up to make sure it worked. Then I put on shoes, and did some edging. I saw my neighbors in their back yard and invited them to try it. I left it to them and watered my pots and plants. Dynee swept the sidewalk. I talked to her for awhile. Then I played around with the edging and trimming capabilities of the mower. I put it away and plugged the battery in so it would have a full charge in case I wanted to mow the grass at the quad later.
Chris went to see a movie. I pulled at the weeds growing among the bricks in the back. Dynee and her husband used a mixture of vinegar, salt, and Dawn dishsoap to kill their weeds. I was worried about the salt, because it's pretty permanent. But I made my own with kombucha, salt, and Dr. Bronner's liquid soap. I poured it on just the bricks close to the house. I had something to eat. I read e-mail and finished the interview from earlier. When I closed that window, my laptop worked faster.
When Chris got back from the movies, I asked him to check my Polar watch, to see how to start it. But he said what I feared: that the battery needed replacing (again). I cleared more e-mail and listened to one of Oprah's meditations. I wrote to Amber that if no one had stepped up to run for President of the FRG, that I would do it until someone else could be found (or I had to leave). I listened to two interviews from the Global Stress Summit.
Chris sat with me and we watched three episodes of Once Upon a Time. Then he retired to his laptop and I typed up my blog post for the day.
* I got one, positive, comment on my necklace in church. *

Necklace fixings

I woke up in a flash – a hot flash. I remembered hearing that you can't sleep if your heart rate is above 60, and mine was. So

I tried to lower it through slow breathing. By the time I got it down, there was another flash.
I got up at 8 to take the food waste out to the street for pick-up. Then I went back to bed... Later, Chris got up to work on his laptop. I washed up and got dressed. I made a quart of lemon water and took vitamin C because my nose was stuffy.
I read an article on 40hz flashing lights helping to activate microglia in the brain. So I looked on Youtube for such a video. The first one I tried had comments from people that counted the hz and said it was only 10. So I tried another one. This one had the comments disabled. So I tried again. This one was audio rather than video, but it worked for listening while reading e-mail. And it had good comments. I read an article about an application for a permit for GE diamondback moths being released into a field of brassica. The females were modified to die if not given tetracycline. The permit was too long to read. But I did searches and did not see where they are planning to study the predators of the moths. What I saw indicated that they assumed no significant harmful effects based on some earlier study. I could tell from the comments that most people hadn't read the study parameters.
I looked for coffee pots on Amazon. I did not find the exact one I had, but there was a replacement pot that had the right dimensions. I added it to my cart, but I needed more to make an order. So I looked at a few other things, and found some slide oil to add to the cart. It still wasn't enough, but I didn't want to waste more time on Amazon.
Chris put a load of laundry in the washer. We discussed genetic engineering , then he went to work. I went outside to water all the plants. I came in to make and eat breakfast. I made a new batch of spice mix for breakfast. I read e-mail while I ate, but my laptop was running very slowly.
After making some headway on e-mail, I went into the kitchen and saw the potatoes I bought at the market yesterday. I cut them up into cubes and stuck them on skewers, then stuck the skewers into a piece of styrofoam. I placed it outside where the potato chunks could get lots of air and (hopefully) not get eaten before they dried. They are intended to be beads, not to be eaten.
Chris came home from work. He took the last of the winter plants outside. I cleaned the window sill. Then we put the tension rod back up.
It was such a nice day that I texted Dynee to see if she wanted to go for a walk. But she was an hour out of town. I called Myra to see if Scott would like to use our rolling walker. She wanted to go for a walk. While we were waiting, I watered Dynee's flowers, then ran back inside for a plastic bag to pick up garbage. When I came out, Myra was talking to Chris. The three of us walked the trail, picking up garbage here and there, and remarking on the fence that can't keep the wild pigs out.
Then Myra went home and we walked uphill to our house. Dynee was home, but then they went to see a movie. Chris heated up pork in the oven for supper. Then he set the oven to self-clean. We opened all the windows. He had to take down the smoke alarms because they screeched so loudly.
I read some e-mail, then fixed Chris' tie, which needed just a few stitches. I cut a strip from a piece of green stretchy fabric to straighten the edge. Then I cut a one inch strip from the trimming. I joined the two together. I wrapped a piece of wire around a chopstick to shape it, but then I couldn't get it off. Chris was watching Small Soldiers at the time. He pulled it off with his leatherman. I greased the chopstick with coconut oil, and then made another wire wrap. It was stuck too, but I was able to get it off myself with the leatherman. For the third wrap, I used a metal chopstick. It came off easier. I bent each one to hang in a v-shape. Then I threaded them onto the green strips, which curled up on themselves nicely. I sat in my sewing room to figure out how to make my new necklace hang so I could finish the ends. I went back to my laptop to look up how the ends should be finished. I got hooked on seeing rope necklaces on Pinterest.
When 8 o'clock came, I told Chris I was ready to watch TV. So he hooked up my laptop to the TV, but it was running so slowly that Netflix wasn't loading. I washed an apple and an orange to eat while it loaded. But then Chris had to hook his laptop to the TV. We watched three episodes, which we often do. But the third one ended in such a cliffhanger, that Chris agreed we could watch a fourth one. Then he was getting cold from the windows being open. I closed some of them while he put the smoke alarms back up. Then we dressed the bed with clean sheets. I tried to check e-mail but it was too slow. So I typed up my blog, hoping to post it with no problems.

No coffee pots

I got up at 8. Chris had already gone to work. I drank water and deleted e-mail. I was looking forward to skyping my tapping buddy at 9. At 8:30 Myra called to ask if I was going to Community Roundup. Since it is usually the first Friday of the month, I was not expecting it today. She also said that a Korean woman from Scott's office had given her a bag of kimbap, and it was too much for her to eat. So she wanted to share it with me. Since she did not have much time before Roundup, I got dressed and ran down to her parking lot. She was just getting ready to drive to my house. She gave me a bag with four rolls of kimbap and said she had kept just as many. I thanked her and went home.
I pulled a roll of kimbap out of the bag. It had two slivers of radish in it. Since food coloring was used on them, I pulled them out, then ate the roll. It was quite flavorful and tasty. Then
I settled myself on the chair by the window and set up my laptop. I needed a pen and found a nice one in the box of stuff Faye sent me. Soon my buddy called me. I couldn't not remember whose turn it was. She said it was mine so we worked on my issues for almost 2 hours. Then I called Myra to see how Roundup went. She said it was fine. We made plans to go to the market after she finished her show. I ate another roll of kimbap, this time with kimchi. The kimchi was tasty, but it covered up the flavors of the kimbap. Then I went outside to water the plants. I did the potted ones first. Then I watered the planted ones with the hose. I had my phone in my fanny pack on the front porch where I could hear it. Only I didn't, right away. When I answered it, Myra had already given up. When I got hold of her, she was ready. So I put on my shoes and took my market bag with me as I walked down to her parking lot. I got there at the same time she did. But she went back inside for her own market bag. Then she drove us to Home Plus and we walked across the street to the market. We saw lots of seedlings and flower plants for sale. They were fun to look at, but Dynee told me not to buy any more since she will be watering them while we are gone, and I respect that. I hoped the plants would still be around when we get back from our vacation. As we walked down the street, I looked for coffee pots and Myra looked for vegetables. She had more luck than I did. We also looked at shoes, but I did not bring enough money for that. In the end, all I got was pineapple and lettuce. I approached the kimchi stand, but the lady remembered me and that I prefer old kimchi. She crossed her hands at the wrists and said 'opsoyo'. Myra was loaded with peppers, cucumbers, broccoli, kale, carrots and ginger. Then we walked back to the car and came home. She dropped me off at my place. I ate another roll of kimbap.
I mowed grass in Dynee's backyard and in the public areas. Terri was walking Lulu and stopped to talk. All of her stuff had arrived and she had been busy arranging it in the house. I finished mowing and then watered Dynee's flowers. I
watched a documentary called Miso Hungry, about an overweight man who adopted Japanese cuisine and walking for 3 months and dropped 50 pounds. I also cleared more e-mail. I listened to interviews from the Female Brain Summit. Apparently memory exercises help with depression.
I boiled water for kombucha in two batches. To each one, I added half a cup of coconut sugar and three tea bags. After they boiled, I also added enough cool water to make 6 cups. I poured the previous kombucha in several jars and diluted them with the new tea. Then I sat down to listen to another audio while catching up on Sudoku. I took a break to water the plants the Chris put out back. I also put away the garbage can. I sat down again to read or listen. Chris came home from work. We talked for a bit, then I resumed listening (but I can't remember what it was.) When he was ready, we sat together to watch episodes of Once Upon a Time. During the second one, the video froze and we had to reboot my laptop. I was concerned that I might lose an open window or one of my open files, but I got them all back after the third episode. While I pieced together my day for this blog, Chris called the airlines and sat on hold for almost half an hour. I took my nightly supplements, then finished my blog. * Some odd looking plants at the market *

Massage and shoe shopping

I got up around 8. I drank water and mopped the kitchen floor. I read e-mail. I made and ate breakfast. I brought the garbage can around to the back yard. The space it had been in was full of dead leaves. I swept up the leaves in the back, emptied the wet cardboard box of plant pots, and filled it with yard waste. I toted it up the hill and dumped it in the woods.
I got some dirt on my shirt from the wet box. I scrubbed at it with a wet wash cloth. While it dried, I transcribed more of the tapping video. It was getting so long that I moved the transcription to its own file.
I stopped the video to go outside and water the plants. Dynee came out as I finished watering all the pots. She wanted me to come along with her to a ceremony tomorrow, but it would take all day. I felt for her, but I declined, glad to have made prior plans.
Suddenly I realized it was time to leave for my massage appointment. I put on shoes and grabbed my market bag. I walked quickly to the massage place. Myra called just as the man came in the little room to rub my back and shoulders. She said she was coming out in town. The man rubbed me the right way most of the time. But sometimes it felt like he was putting his weight into my ribs with his elbow.
Afterward, I called Myra back. She was half way into town. I went to the junk store, but did not find a coffee pot or something else that would work. I walked back to the main street and turned left, toward the internet place which was where Myra needed to go. I stopped and called her again. She had gotten waylaid by proselytizers. So I waited for her to walk up.
We went to the internet place and she paid her bill. Then we walked to the rotary circle to see what was up with all the lanterns. I think it for Buddha's birthday. We also stopped by Michele's bank, which is in the circle. Then we went to Office Depot. There were no coffee pots, but they did have some nice plant pots. Myra got a gift box. From there we walked toward Daiso, passing three shoe shops. We looked at the shoes in each place. I was hoping for something to replace what I am wearing, but nothing was quite like it. We arrived at the plant place across from Daiso. Myra bought wave petunias. Then we went into Daiso. We looked at pens, pots, beads, and other stuff. As we checked out, I noticed it was getting dark, which means cooler. Because I was wearing shorts, I hoped to get home as soon as possible.
We were headed back when suddenly a dead bird whammed into the ground by Myra's feet. Looking up, we saw fluttering feathers. The bird must have flown straight into the building and broken its neck. We continued home, and went to my house. I gave her a container of pork ribs for supper. After she left, I ate two few myself. Then I put the glass pans that the pork was cooked in, in the oven to warm up the fat so I could wipe it up. Then I let them soak in soapy water. I washed a bunch of lettuce, and ate it while deleting e-mail. I looked at sewing projects on line. I listened to some interviews, then practiced my trombone. After one more interview, I tasted the kombucha that I forgot about for a few weeks. It was pretty sour. I added my nightly supplements to it and drank. I went back to transcribing. The taxi arrived with Chris in it. I paused to talk to him. When he went to change, I transcribed a little more. Then we watched an episode of Once Upon a Time. He went to bed and I stayed up to blog.
* decorations in the rotary circle *

Busy rainy day

I got up about 7:40. First I prepared the recyclables and took them out to the curb. I saw the garbage can in front yard, and called Chris, who said it was to remind himself to take it out before he left for Seoul. I put a dark load of fabric in the washer. I wrote check to mail. I worked on a math problem that Kurt sent me. Then I read e-mail while drinking a quart of water.
Chris came home to put the pork in the oven to warm up, and went back to work. When the washer finished, I pulled the fabric out, and it was full of strings. I was trying to cut it free when Myra called. I talked to her, and it was kind of depressing news. I finished freeing the fabric, and put it in the dryer. I made up supplements.
Chris came home to get the pork from the oven, and take it to work. I ate breakfast, then folded the fabric from the dryer. I ordered more supplements. I poked my head out to see the thermometer and saw Dynee. She said to let her know when I was leaving. I packed my bag for class and put on my shoes. I called Dynee, then went out and watered the plants on the porch. It was a rainy day, but not on the porch. She came out and we walked to the chapel together.
Lacee was waiting for us. The classroom next to the storage room was available so we set up there. Soon Chantal and So Young came in. So Young brought her hair cutting kit from the class she has been taking. She took out her fabric and showed us the cape she borrowed from the class. Myra came in and she had an easier cape to copy. Dynee had enough blue nylon material for two capes so she and So Young both used it. Suzanne brought a cushion to work on. Ms. Chong and Chantal worked on quilts and Sue made two pillowcases. I was busy helping. In fact, I edged Dynee's cape for her. So Young also made a child's cape.
Then she sat me down and cut my hair. The others were watching and made nice comments. I wasn't sure if they were just being positive or not. But it was nice to have short hair again. It helps with the hot flashes. So Young swept up the hair and I put it in a bag for my garden.
One by one, they finished their projects and left. Dynee and I walked home together, except that Chris picked me up just before we got home. He had a lot of pork left over because not many people showed up. He was wearing a suit jacket and tie with crummy jeans. He explained that it was denim day.
He put the pork in the fridge and packed for his trip. I went outside to trim the bushes and watch for the taxi. I let Chris know when it arrived and he took his suitcase out to meet it. And then he was on his way to Seoul.
I put the last of the fabric in the washer, and added three small rugs. I ran it. I looked for my triangle ruler again. Lacee had found one so did not need it, but I really wanted to know where mine was and could not find it.
I put on the interviews from the Female Brain Summit, and ironed up all the fabric I bought while I listened. It only took 3.5 interviews. Then I had to plug up my laptop again.
I ate carrots and lettuce. I read e-mail, and swatted at a mosquito with my electric racket. I meditated with Oprah. I cleared a lot of e-mail.
Chris called from the hotel in Seoul. He was on hold with the airline people who had canceled our flight to China next month. We talked for a bit and then the lady came on the line. She did not have a good alternative, but promised to keep looking. Then he had to get ready for an interview with Fort Hood.
After hanging up, I continued my transcription of the tapping video. Then one of my tapping buddies messaged me that we were meeting later tonight. I didn't know that, but I responded that it was ok. I finished a little more of the tapping video. Then I had something to drink, and jotted notes for my blog. I put the clean rugs back in place. In a few minutes, my tapping buddy called me on Skype and we had a productive session, for both of us. It was after midnight when she had to go. I typed up my blog, took my evening supplements, and went to bed.
* Ms. Chong cuts squares for her next quilt. *

Fabric, glorius fabric

I got up at 6, just after Chris did. Chris had the pork in the oven all night. He pulled it out and left it on top of the stove to cool. It smelled so good. He gave me a piece to eat. Then I drank water and read e-mail. Just before Chris left for work, he put all the pork in the fridge.
I listened to two interviews while I stretched and had breakfast. I washed up and got dressed. I put some seed crackers in a ziplock bag, which I left on the counter. I washed an apple and put it in a bag with a paper towel. I noticed that the air in the fridge was warm from the pork, not cold like usual. I poured fermented coconut water in a glass bottle, which I put in a plastic bag just in case. I put the apple and coconut water in my market bag. I put won in my wallet. I called Dynee to see if she was driving or walking to the commissary to meet the bus. Her husband was dropping her off on his way to work. She told me I should drive. So I did.
I got the keys and drove to the commissary, parking across the street. The bus was waiting, so I boarded it, with my rolling cart. Presently Myra joined us. There were only 6 of us. The driver then closed the door and we headed to Daegu. We chatted all the way. Lacee told us she had some projects that she would like to present to the sewing class. I was glad to hear that she would keep the class going after I left.
I sipped my coconut water during the trip, and near the end noticed that my market bag was soaked. I don't know how that happened, unless the plastic bag leaked, too.
When we got to the market, we all got off. We followed Ms. Chong down the long street to the fabric building. We all went to together to the fourth floor. There was a lady selling quilting cotton for $2 a yard. So we went through the piles of flat-folds. Lacee and I finished shopping first, so we wandered off. We found other places to shop, but none as good.
Finally we joined the others on the third floor, where a man was selling flat-folds for $2 a yard. But he also had some $1 fabric. I got some cotton and some nylon for hair cutting capes.
We got separated again, looking for batting. Between the third floor and the fourth floor there were three places to buy it. We got a volume discount on the fourth floor. Between four of us, we bought the whole roll of lightweight fusible batting. In fact, I was the last one, and I asked for 10 yards and only got 8.
The others were gone, so I went off by myself. I left the building and headed for the lace shop, knowing the underwear place was close by. But the construction made everything look different and I got turned around. I found one underwear place with a good price on panties but not bras. But eventually I found the other place and got 2 bras as well. I tried one of the new little alleyways, lined with tiny restaurants. But I turned around and went back when a shouting match broke out and I did not want to squeeze past the participants.
When I thought I had found the main street, I looked for a bathroom. I went into the nearest building. It was full of hanbok fabrics. I ran into Ms. Chong and Sue and Myra. But I lost them again when they left the building. I asked around for a bathroom, but no one seemed to understand the Korean word for bathroom. Then a man asked me in English what I wanted. Thankfully he knew the word 'toilet' and showed me the way. My friends were already in line! So I waited with them and soon we were ready to go.
We walked out and down the corridor. I heard a man saying 500 won in Korean. He was selling mini kimbaps so I bought two with my last 1000 won note. Ms. Chong then bought a whole plateful. Then we walked the long street to the place where we got off the bus. Dynee and Lacee were waiting for us. Ms. Chong passed out the mini-kimbaps she bought and also bought a fermented rice cake, which we shared. We chatted until the bus arrived, but it parked further down so we had to walk a little further. We got on and rode back to base, arriving about an hour and a half later. Lacee and Dynee got in my car and I dropped off Lacee at her house. I parked in my usual spot and Dynee and I walked to our houses. We remarked how her grass was longer than mine. I went inside to have a bite to eat and check e-mail. Then I went outside to water the plants. It was kind of a rainy day so they didn't need much. I used the gallon water jugs and added some epsom salts to each one. Before I finished, Dynee ran out of her house, late for something, and asked me to water her plants, too. So when I finished mine, I watered hers. Then I got out the lawn mower and mowed our front lawns. I put the mower away and went back inside. Soon she texted me that she needed white velcro and I said I had some. So they came back and she came over. I showed her what I had and she asked for a piece of the wide one, for her husband's new uniform. I gathered the tailor did not have any. Then I started listening to another audio. Presently Chris came home from work. I stopped the audio to talk to him. Then Ryan came over and gave Chris a plate of two hamburgers. Chris invited me to have one while he changed his suit. I put mustard on one and wrapped it in lettuce and ate it. It was quite good. Then he came out and ate the other one and the bun from mine. I continued to listen to the audio while I pulled out all my new fabrics. I clipped the corners and separated them into two piles; light and dark. I put the light pile in the washing machine along with my wet market bag. I started the machine and went back to my e-mail. When Chris was ready, he sat with me and we watched an episode until the washer finished. Then I moved it over to the dryer. We watched another episode. Then Chris pulled all the pork apart and put it back in the fridge. I pulled all the fabric from the dryer and folded it. I took my market bag back to be ironed. For some reason, it was still wet. I also looked for my triangle ruler so Lacee could borrow it. But I could not find it. Then Chris went to bed, but I stayed up to recount the events of the day.
* The mini-kimbap man *

Walking on base

Last night I listened to a delta audio on YouTube, hoping it would put me to sleep. But not so much. I went to bed and eventually fell asleep.
I got up around 8. I drank some water, then made coffee and exercised, rebounded and drybrushed. I did tapping and meditation (two from Oprah's current series). Then I cleaned the kitchen. Chris came home for lunch, so I moved to the bathrooms. He went back to work while I dust mopped the floors. I cleaned all the door knobs and then made and ate breakfast while reading e-mail.
I went outside to water all the plants. Dynee came came out to water hers. She suggested walking the trail. So when I finished watering, I went inside to put on my shoes. When I came out, Terri walked up with Lulu and wanted to socialize her. So we talked with Terri at length, ignoring Lulu so she would get used to sitting patiently while her owner was conversing.
When Terri left, Dynee and I walked up the trail, over the hill and down the other side. Then we went across lower housing and up the hill behind our duplex and down the steps. She went to her house and I went to my back door.
I put a stick of bamboo in a pot with rocks. I put three plant hangers on it to see what it looked like. I thought it might look good on the front porch, but what would grow there in the shade?
Then I called Myra to see if I could come see what she did with her plants. She said to come on down. It was 4 and I thought Scott would be home, but she said he was in the hospital with a broken foot. So I walked down to the quad. Myra was walking her neighbor's dog. She showed me all her plants.
Then we walked to the FFTC. She went to the Nex for a carton of soda while I went upstairs to find out how many people signed up for the trip tomorrow. Paul and Brittany were just leaving. They said only 7 people signed up, but they were going to run the trip anyway in case more people would come next time. I mentioned that Tuesdays were bad days for a trip because the school gets out early. So they said it would be a different day next time.
I went down to meet Myra. We walked back to her place. After we talked some, I went home for supper. I washed a large bowl of lettuce and some baby carrots. I ate that while listening to an audio and composing a post to the community Facebook page to encourage more people to sign up for the fabric trip.
Chris came home from work and made his own supper. I ate some spaghetti squash and some dried apricots. I jotted some notes for my blog. I started a video on menopause and brain fog.
When Chris was ready, I paused the video and we watched two or three episodes of Once Upon a Time. Then we discussed when I needed to get up tomorrow for the trip to the fabric market. He went to bed and I stayed up to delete e-mail and finish my blog.
* This is the black lettuce I bought in the market yesterday. *

Five day market

I got up after Chris left for church. I drank a quart of water while reading e-mail. I started the QandA for The Truth About Vaccines. But I paused it at 9:30 to take a shower and get dressed. I looked for today's songs in my e-mail but could not find them. Chris came back from church. Then I got my Sunday purse filled and put on my shoes.
He drove me to church and dropped me off. I sat in my usual seat and talked to Kathy who was there with her kids. Soon the service started. The praise leader with the guitar wasn't able to play today, so his backup led us in three hymns. That was really nice. Then lots of hand-shaking. Then the choir sang a really nice hymn that I hadn't heard before called “Yes, Lord, Yes”. The sermon was about the exodus from Egypt.
After the service, I talked to Suzanne, giving her the magnesium oil she wanted. Dynee paid me for the Biosil. So Young told me she had been studying how to cut hair and wanted to make a hair cut cape on Wednesday. I called Chris to come get me.
I walked up to the street and presently he drove by and parked at the commissary. We went in. He shopped while I used the restroom. Then I picked up some celery and distilled water. We checked out, using the two plastic bags I had remembered to throw in my purse. Hopefully next time I will bring more.
We took our food home and put it away. I made and ate breakfast. Then I put on my fanny pack and went outside. Dynee called to ask if I was ready to go to the 5-day market. I watered the transplanted bush and then we got in her car. She drove us to the market. It took awhile to find a parking space.
We passed a flower stand and I bought three petunias. Then we wandered down the side street to the main street. We bought various vegetables. Dynee bought two hydrangeas for the front of her house, and then she found a lilac. She wanted two of them, but the man only had one. But it was really nice and smelled so good. She also wanted to buy shepherd's hooks, but we could not find any.
Then we went back, and on the way got oranges and peppers. I also bought three tomato plants and six black lettuce plants. She drove us back to post.
At her house, we discussed where to plant the lilac. I saw that Terri had left more plants on my porch. I put my veggies away, except for the lettuce, which I put in the sink to re-hydrate. Then I went outside.
Dynee's husband dug a hole in the middle of their yard and they planted the lilac in it. I watered all my plants and most of our shared plants. I planted the tomatoes and the lettuce. I put two of the petunias in slightly bigger pots. I tied each one with twine so the plant hangers would have something to hold on to. Then I shoved one of the bamboo poles into the ground and hung the plants on it. I rounded up all my old plants, looking for another pot that size but did not find one.
When it was all done, I came in for supper. I ate eggplant, and spaghetti squash with raw garlic on it. I listened to an interview on ketones, then transcribed more of the video from yesterday. I also jotted notes for my blog.
When Chris was ready, we watched three episodes, each one ending in a cliffhanger. Chris went to bed and I stayed up to blog, and maybe listen to a delta BWE.
* It needs a little something, but I haven't figured out what. *

Decisions

We slept in late and got up about 9:30. I drank a quart of water and deleted e-mail. There was a message from the tapping buddy. I was not sure how to answer her. I listened to an audio and then I washed up and got dressed. I heard Ryan outside trimming our shared sidewalk. I called Dynee but she didn't answer. I read a little more. Then I went outside and saw her. She was sweeping the sidewalk. I started watering the plants. But the bending was hurting my back, so I came in to lay on the floor for a bit.
Chris was skyping with Michele on my laptop. I talked to her from the floor, and later sat on the couch. We had a nice chat. Then I had to finish watering the plants.
After that, I came in to make and eat breakfast. I watched an interview on somatics. He recommended pandiculation, saying it was better than stretching for muscle release and pain management. Chris went to work. I looked up pandiculation. I watched a Youtube video demonstration.
I saw a TEDx talk on what makes a good life: close personal relationships. Loneliness is toxic.
It was such a nice day that I went back out. I trimmed the yard with grass shears. And I dug up the weeds between the bricks in the front. I found centipedes under there but left them alone because they were where they should be.
Chris came home with his hands full of meat and some lemons. I used one lemon to make hummus. Then I cleaned in the kitchen: I tried a Magic Eraser on the sink, the countertop, the burner rings, and the bottom of the teapot. It did ok, but not outstanding.
I was reading e-mail when Chris left for the party (day 2). I elected to stay home this time, listening to audios and eating stuff from the freezer. I made a cucumber smoothie. I put together an Amazon order. The first two things were easy, but then I needed $3.50 more stuff to get free shipping. I tried Miracle-gro but when I checked out, it wouldn't ship. I looked into several other things, then ordered a seaweed fertilizer. It was a liquid, but it was shippable. But in the process of checking out, Amazon showed me the cutest watering can and I just had to get it for Dynee. So I deleted the fertilizer.
I finished listening to the first audio my Friday morning tapping buddy sent me. Then I began transcribing the second one. I paused it when Chris came home from the party. He sat with me and we watched two episodes. I soaked the new shower filter and then he installed it in the master shower. He went to bed and I stayed up to blog.
* This is the cupcake I made yesterday. *

Planting flowers and avoiding beer

I got up about 7:30, a little after Chris left. I drank a quart of water and did some yoga stretches while playing an audio. Then Dynee knocked on my door. She had questions about the flowers we all got yesterday. So I got dressed. She told me that Carolyn and Mai had better displays than we did. We walked up there to look. Then we decided to put our geraniums in last year's baskets to put along the fence. She had 7, so I gave her 8 baskets. She'd already started planting in front of her house. She wanted to dig up a little bush in front of her house and tried with the trowel, but it didn't work.
Then I went in to get ready for my Skype call. I lowered the shade so my tapping buddy could see me on the screen. Then she texted me that she needed a few more minutes. So I went to my sewing room to work on the cupcake. I traced and cut little white circles for frosting and one for the dollop in the center.
I had started the running stitch for the cupcake top when I heard the skype call. I answered. She asked me about how my unread e-mails were going and we talked and tapped about her stuff. Then she told me she was going to an EFT conference in New Jersey. I was kind of jealous but also excited for her. At the end, she sent me two tapping links.
After the call, I mowed our lawn, Dynee's lawn and the public areas in front of our lawns. Mowing the back yard, I noticed Chris in the kitchen so I put the mower away and came in. I had such a hot flash that I had to rip my clothes off. Chris did not mind. I asked him if a hot flash was as dangerous as high fever and he said he didn't think the flashes lasted long enough.
I made breakfast while Chris ate his lunch. Then he left. I ate breakfast while watching a video on breathing and digestion. He said breathing should be light and even, not noticeable. He also said we breathe too much.
Then I watched a video on pregnancy and the microbiome. I worked on the felt cupcake. My felt was too stiff to do it right. Dynee came knocked on my door again. So I got dressed, this time in shorts, and answered it. She was digging out the bush with a real shovel. Between the two of us we got it out and planted it in the row with all the rest. I showed her how I water the plants and she watered a bunch of them. I placed a few more along the fence, continuing our geranium theme. We also put out the blueberry plants, and orchids. We planted roses in her front yard. We discovered that each pot of roses had two or three plants in it. She only wanted the pink ones, so I took the others and she gave me a yellow one. I put up the shepherds hooks. We were out of hanging baskets but still had the hangers, so I used the hangers with the fushia pots to hang them at the end of the row of bushes. I put the roses in 4 matching pots and placed them at the end of the cement fence. I also planted the three peppers and the two wave petunias. Then I watered everything. Dynee had to get ready for a dinner out. I went in and sat down to read e-mail.
I had just started the Day 9 meditation from Oprah when Chris came home. He changed his clothes and handed me a package from Swansons, then went to a party the fire chief was throwing. A little later he called to say it was for wives too and three of them were asking for me. So I made myself a green smoothie, then put on clean clothes. I walked down to the fire chief's house. It was the one with the front door open and a grill sitting on the sidewalk. I walked in and saw Terri so I talked to her. Eventually Kim joined us and Chris said 'hi'. I got a plate and tried the jabchai, pork and strawberries.
The fire chief came by to say that after eating, we would all play Beer Pong and darts. I wasn't interested in either game, especially the Beer Pong, since it involved throwing ping pong balls into a cup of beer (or whatever) and then the other person had to drink it. It just wasn't sanitary. We women tried to hide out, talking. Eventually the fire chief introduced me to some mixed drink he was fixing which called for Kalua, Vodka, and chocolate milk. He put it in a shot glass, but I only had one sip. It hit me pretty quickly. Chris came by and offered me a sip of his wine. Then I had to sit down, and the chairs were by the beer pong game. I watched. Kim and Mari came over to talk. Chris was in the kitchen, telling stories and trying the alcoholic beverages. One of the ping pong balls bounced near me. I threw it across the table. It bounced once and fell in one of the cups of beer. There was an outburst of acclamation.
I watched the time, knowing I had another skype call scheduled. Finally the party seemed to break up. The fire chief talked about tomorrow's party (for a different shift of his staff). I collected Chris and we went home.
He was in a talkative mood, so I let him talk. I told him some things I heard at the party. When the time for the skype call came, I went over to my laptop and checked my messages. There was nothing from her and no indication that she was online. Chris sat with me and we talked a bit more. When she did not show up, we took our conversation to the bedroom.... Then I came out to the living room to check one more time for a message. I posted to my blog and went to bed.
* Our new spring line-up. *

An explosion of flowers

I got up around 8. I washed up, got dressed, read e-mail and drank water.
I found a plastic crate out back and walked down to Housing by 9. Ladies were already there picking out flowers. Terri told me we were allowed to get one of each and two geraniums. So I picked out what looked good to me. Then I ran home to get my phone. I took pics of the flowers. I texted Dynee to see if she wanted me to pick flowers for her since she was out of town. She said yes so I asked her if she wanted the yellow/orange ones, or the pink/purple ones. She chose the pink/purple. I chose a set for her with the most buds. Then I traded a lily to Lily for a geranium. I may have traded with someone else, too. The flowers were not all good choices for gardens. Orchids, for example. The begonias and impatiens were not there.
As I was finishing Dynee's flowers, Tammy drove by and asked if I needed a ride. Although Housing is close to me, it would have taken me 4 trips to transport all the flowers. So I accepted. She helped me carry the flats to the porches. We talked about the bandannas she wanted for a birthday party.
I made and ate breakfast while reading e-mail and listening to audios. Chris came home for lunch. I asked him if I could trade the orchid for something else. He said I could do whatever I wanted. But the lady I was going to trade with changed her mind.
I was listening to an audio and they said something Chris disagreed with and he said so, at length and included something he heard yesterday. I told him I was trying to rest and digest. I put on headphones to finish the interview. He finished his lunch and left. I wondered if he was upset with me.
I continued to process e-mail. I texted Kathy who had told me earlier that she had an extra bag of cacao nibs. I asked if I could stop by, but she was leaving so she left the bag on her porch. I looked up the price of cacao nibs. I listened to a meditation. Then I went to her place. I picked up the bag, and put down her jar with some cash in it.
Then I walked out in town to the massage place. I was 10 minutes early. But it was ok. I got a nice foot massage, thinking pleasant thoughts the whole time, and playing classical music on my phone.
After the massage, I walked through the market to Daiso. I bought a pack of toothbrushes infused with charcoal. Then I went to the plant place across the street and bought two wave petunias. At least, I think they were (are). From there I went to the junk store and got a pack of tiny barrettes for my hair. But on the way I passed another plant place and got 3 pepper plants. Then I went to the little corner market and bought a package of lettuce.
Finally, I walked home. There were more plants on my porch. Terri must have gotten them for me when the extras were up for grabs.
It was not quite 5. I called Myra, and she was home with a headache. I checked e-mail and texted Dynee. I made two smoothies, one with cucumber and one with lettuce. Then I decided to make seed crackers. I had just popped them in the oven when Chris came through the door. He wanted to bake spaghetti squash and eggplant. The seed crackers were done by the time he changed clothes and got the squash and egg plant washed, chopped and covered with spices. He also stir-fried onions, garlic, tomatoes and spices as a topping for the squash when it was done.
I looked up felt cupcakes on Pinterest and Youtube. I wanted to make one for a friend who is leaving and is an expert cupcake maker and a budding stitcher. It can double as a pincushion. The tutorials I found were in Spanish. But I took notes from the pictures.
When the food was done, I ate some of each. Then I pulled out my pieces of felt and drew circles with a CD. Chris was having trouble getting my laptop to talk to the TV, so I went back to the livingroom. We had to reboot my laptop to get it to work properly, which was odd since it seemed to have rebooted over night. We watched two episodes. Then he went to bed and I stayed up to blog and check e-mail one last time.
* It may not look like an explosion from this distance, but close up it was much more impressive. *

Dinosaurs, unite!

I got up about 7. I collated the recyclables. Then I broke down a bunch of Amazon and Swanson boxes and put them out for pick-up too. I oiled my hair.
I deleted a bunch of e-mail. I read some and listened to some interviews. I ran the dishwasher.
At 10, I started episode 7 of The Truth About Vaccines:
Studies have shown that people can be 'vaccinated' with homeopathic substances which carry no risk and do benefit the immune system.
“Healthy People 2020” guidelines are to get all adults fully vaccinated by 2020, with every vaccine on the schedule now and all the ones coming out. Electronic medical records now have a box for vaccine status to be checked. This may in the future affect your right to fly, get or renew a driver's license, go to public events, etc. One of the stated goals is to eliminate the right to refuse a vaccination.

I had breakfast. I had to pause the vaccine video to take a shower and put on shorts and a t-shirt. I gathered all the supplies needed for today's project. Then I headed out toward the chapel.
Myra was coming out of her place and it was timed perfectly. We walked together to the chapel. We went in the back door as instructed yesterday and found a man getting the room ready for a meeting. He said the chapel secretary had removed all our sewing stuff and placed it in the other classroom. I figured she had forgotten the large cutting mats, so I ducked in and grabbed those. Then we went to the other room.
Apparently the schedule changed since yesterday. I was glad we still had a room to meet in. I let the man know that our ladies were expecting to come into that room, so he printed a sign and posted it on the door. Then Sue and Chong showed up. We let them in the other back door. I got them started on the taggie dinosaur. Anna popped in to start one, but had to leave for a meeting.
Myra went home for the sign-in sheets and then went to the meeting in the sanctuary. It was about what to expect when you are expecting in Korea. Ok, so my target population for this project was hijacked. Still, everyone made one. Just after 1, Chantal called from the front gate. So I walked down there to sign her in, and we walked back together. She brought quilt blocks to work on, but made a taggie dinosaur instead. The ends of her center ribbon came out when she turned it right sides out. I stitched it with a deeper seam allowance, and then just topstitched the free end to the stitched end. I forgot to tell the ladies to clip their seams, so they had to be turned back, clipped, and turned right again. Anna came back after her meeting, and several people came from the expectant meeting. Allison came for the first time, and she made one. She had never sewn before, but she went slowly and did a good job. We started packing up. I walked Chantal back to the front gate to sign her out. Then I walked home. On the way I stopped at Housing to ask when we could meet there again. He said the men had moved out, but there were a lot of repairs to be done before the room was useable, and he would let us know when they were done.
I finished the vaccine video. I watched a few other, shorter videos that came in my e-mail. I laid down on the floor with two small balls under the back of my head. I listened to a Holosync audio with headphones. Since I have to turn my volume up to 100 on Windows 10 to hear anything, the headphones practically deafened me. I turned them down for 20 minutes. After the audio, I cleared some more e-mail. I blended up a cucumber and ate it. I did some Sudoku puzzles. Chris came home from work. He made himself supper. We watched two episodes. Then he went to bed. I practiced my trombone, then made a night-time potion of magnesium, vitamin C, tryptophan, and melatonin. I put up my hair, and wrote up my blog post.

Belle in the making

I stayed in bed late to get some sleep once the night sweats subsided. I got up about 8:30. I drank a quart of water while deleting e-mail.
Then I listened to an interview with a man who teaches people to walk correctly. It was fascinating to hear how people stand, sit, walk and sleep incorrectly. IT seems walking, if done right, massages all the organs and is very healing. I downloaded his e-book on psoas release.
Then I listened to the next installment of The Truth About Vaccines: people who got the chicken pox vaccine as kids were more likely to get shingles as adults. Because of the vaccine, we are now seeing more cases of Zoster. And more cases of shingles because there is no 'booster' of immunity by being exposed to kids with chicken pox. Some vaccines have the antigen grown on aborted fetal cells, or cells from animals. These cells are then injected as vaccinations, complete with foreign DNA.
Chris came home for lunch before the video was finished. I made and ate breakfast. I caught up on Sudoku. I called Myra to see if she wanted to walk to the bank, but she was busy making a Belle dress for the Beauty and the Beast party next Saturday. I called Terri too, but she did not answer.
Before I left, I noticed a niacin flush starting. So I bided my time, watering the plants and picking some lettuce. Akia messaged me asking for a box so I messaged her back. I waited a little bit and she mentioned 1:30. I thought I could make it before then, so I walked quickly down to the bank and back. I stopped at the chapel to ask which classroom we would be sewing in tomorrow. She told us classroom 2, but we would have to come in the back door since someone else would be having a presentation in the main room.
Then I went home, barely making 1:30. Akia was not there, so I messaged her that I was going to Myra's house and that the boxes were in the back yard. But when I opened the door, she was walking up the sidewalk. We went around back to get the boxes. She put them in the back of Chelsea's van. I hoped she would get a flight out with her dogs on her departure date.
Then I went to Myra's place. She was working on the Belle dress. I let her use me as a dress form. I watched her sew as we talked. Around 4 I went home, tired. I laid down while listening to an interview. I ate some roasted cabbage. I listened to one of Oprah's meditation. I opened a coconut. I peeled out the contents and put them in a bag. When the second interview was over, it was almost time to go. I jotted notes for my blog.
Then I put on my shoes and coat and walked to the commissary. It had just closed. I sat on a bench outside. Presently the young couple from church walked up. We talked for a few minutes until Kim came out and locked the commissary. Then we got in her van and she drove us to the antique shop. She parked the car in a nearby lot and we walked to the shop. Maranda petted the dog tethered outside. We went in and Kim gave chocolates to the owner.
Then we all looked around. Kim found a nice jade elephant. Maranda found a green celadon pot. I did not see anything I needed. When the owner packed up Kim's stuff, there were vases in it. Maybe she had them on hold?
Anyway, on the way back, the couple asked where they could get supper and Kim pointed out the chicken place near post. But they had to drop off their pot, so she drove them home, then drove me home. Parked outside my house, she told me if I became FRG president, she would attend the meetings. She said Myra thought I should be president, too. And that Maranda would make a good VP.
Then I got out and she left. I picked up the food waste pail and brought it in. Chris was having supper. I put a plate of kombucha out for the slugs to see if they liked it as much as beer. (I don't even know if they are out yet for the season.)
I watched an interview on kombucha and fermented foods. I ate some fermented purple cabbage. Then we watched the third episode of The Librarians, thinking there was a fourth, but there was not. So we saw one episode of Once Upon a Time. It looked like a season ender, what with Storybrooke disappearing like it had never been. But it was not, and Chris did not want to stay up to see what happened in the next episode. I wrote to my blog and joined him in bed.
* Here is a pic of the rain from yesterday. *

Rainy day and taggie toy

Before I went to bed last night, I ordered some cacao nibs on Amazon. I run out of them so quickly. I happened to check my wish list and saw that the sewing machine Myra has had dropped from $137 to $82 with $13 shipping. The total was less than the $100 the post office had paid for messing up my last machine. So I ordered it, then went to bed.

Chris tried to wake me up early so I could finish my coffee morning by 10 in order to go to the flower show with Kim and friends. But I decided that rushing to get ready by 10 defeated the whole purpose of having a relaxing, meditative morning. And it was raining. He left before 8, which was when I got up. I drank two cups of water, then swished with coconut oil and a drop of clove oil. From there, it was the usual exercises, etc.
Just as I was finishing my meditations and starting to clean, Chris came home for lunch. I cleaned the bathrooms while he used the kitchen to make lunch. Then I cleaned the kitchen. He went back to work, leaving the lid of the bread machine open. That was my cue to make more bread. I listened to the next day of the Truth about Vaccines: When a vaccine targets a few strains of a virus, it creates a vacuum. That vacuum gets filled with other strains that are both more prevalent and more virulent than the previous strains. Gardasil has the highest concentration of aluminum of any vaccine on the market. Shaken baby syndrome should be studied, SIDS is most prevalent during 2 to 4 months of age, lots of vaccines are given during that time period.
After the video, I read e-mail. There was a message from Amazon that the credit card charge was denied. But when I checked into it, they had used an old card number. Easily rectified. I watched a short video on shoulder and back stretches. I called Myra to tell her I had ordered a sewing machine like hers because the price had dropped to $82. I asked if anyone else was looking to buy a machine. After the call, I checked again, but the price was back up to $137. ???
I looked at taggie toys on Pinterest, hoping to find something really cute and simple to make for class. The hedgehog was cute, but no tutorial was given. So was the jelly fish, but it used trims I didn't have. Some things had embroidered faces. Finally I came across a simple dinosaur. I sent myself the link so I could open it on the desktop. I printed two copies of the pattern. One of them got spray-glued to a raisin box for stability and then I cut it out. I rummaged through my fleeces to find one that I could spare. I traced and cut one dinosaur. I took it to my sewing room to find something for the other side.
Chris came home from work so I called out to him. He came back to see what I was doing, then he changed his clothes and made his supper. I selected a chevron fabric for the other side. I traced and cut the reverse of the dinosaur. Then I sorted through my ribbons to find some with the same colors as the chevron fabric.
I went to my laptop to find out how long the ribbons should be. One pattern said 4 inches and another one said 5. But the ones on the dinosaur seemed to be graduated. So I cut two at 3”, two at 4”, two at 5” and the middle one at 6”. I folded them in half and pinned them to one of the dinosaurs. I paired them up and sewed around, leaving a gap between the legs as shown in a picture from the tutorial. But it wasn't nearly big enough to turn it right sides out. So I sewed up that hole and used the seam ripper to make one under the tail. I turned it, and used a chopstick to stuff it, then whip-stitched it shut. I took it to the cutting room for it's closeup.
Then I told Chris I would be ready to watch TV at 8. I put the food waste in its container and tagged it for pickup. I had scrubbed the sink earlier with baking soda and it looked terrible. I scrubbed it again, then used soap. But it looked like the baking soda had etched it. I looked up baking soda and stainless steel online. Everything I saw said baking soda was good for cleaning stainless steel. Then Chris came over and loaded a Netflix DVD in the player. We watched two episodes of The Librarians. I really liked the second episode – a man was reading an old book of fairytales and the town started acting them out. After the shows, I went into the bathroom to try shaving the shocks of white hair that grow on the back of my neck. Chris came in to kiss me goodnight. I persuaded him to shave the locks of hair for me.
Then Chris went to bed and I stayed up to blog.
* What kind of dinosaur is this? *

Easter Sunday

I stayed up to watch April the giraffe give birth and went to bed after the little guy was on his feet. What a miracle!
I woke up hearing Chris get ready for church. I was slowly coming out of a dream where the same event happened over and over and I was trying to tell people it had happened before and we needed to play it out differently (because everyone died each time).
Chris left just as I got up. I drank a quart of water with the last of the citrus pectin. I checked e-mail and watched a video on how toxins (some of which are found in vaccines) affect children's neurological development.
I took my shower. I gave myself a haircut and saved the cuttings. I put on my Easter dress and earrings. I filled my new purple bag with stuff for church. Chris had just come home from chapel when I realized my slip was showing. So I put on a different slip.
Then Chris drove me to church. I sat in my usual pew and talked to the lady behind me, who I hadn't seen before. Then Chris came up to say he was leaving. I assumed he was going home. Ms. Pae came and sat beside me. She admired the fabric in my dress, so I told her about the trip to Daegu fabric market and she said she would take the day off to go.
Then the chaplain started the service. The praise team led three praise songs as usual. I had hoped for traditional hymns. The choir did sing an Easter hymn. There was communion. The new couple beside me went back to get their cracker and grape juice like everyone else but brought it back to their seat like last week. I gave them the nod to consume it now instead of waiting for the chaplain, who was not going to lead it. Then we had the reading from Luke about the two criminals crucified with Jesus. The sermon was called “The good, the bad and the ugly.”
After the sermon, I introduced myself to the couple and invited them to come with us to the Easter brunch at Turtle Cove. I called Chris to come get us. Then we went to the desk for tickets that the chapel was handing out to get the brunch for free. But the tickets were all gone. Chris showed up and we piled in the car. He drove us to Turtle Cove.
Ms. Song was there to record the names of people who came to church but did not have tickets. Chris already had a ticket for me. Then we went inside to eat. Chris said he had already eaten. I stood in line with our new friends.
Then Chris took me away to introduce me to someone else, who I had seen in church last week. She had admired my dress, too. I invited her to our sewing class, but she could not make it at the scheduled time. Then I got in line and filled my plate with what seemed safest.
I found the couple sitting with Chris and sat down. We had a nice lunch together. In fact, there was only one table of people remaining when we left. We dropped them off at their place. Then we came home and changed clothes to go to the commissary. We walked there. We shopped there. As we were leaving, Kim came out to talk to us, and the new couple was walking by. So I introduced her to Kim, since she had an interest in antique shops and Kim is good friends with the proprietor. We made a plan to go on Tuesday night. Then we walked home, Chris carrying the bulk of the groceries. When we got home, we put them away.
Chris got on his laptop and I listened to the next day of Truth About Vaccines.
In Japan, children are vaccinated only after the age of 2. Across first world nations, there is an association between infant mortality and number of vaccines given by the first birthday.
I paused it to watch two episodes with Chris. Then he walked into town to a restaurant called The Meat Kitchen to meet some guys from base. I ate some liver with onions and a raw clove of garlic. I watered the plants and swatted tiny fliers with the mosquito racket. I spread my hair cuttings along the flowerbed to deter nibblers.
I finished the vaccine video. I made and ate breakfast. I started a video on stretches for managing back and shoulder pain. Chris came home from the restaurant. He handed me a box of utensil rests that they had given each of the men.
We watched an episode of Once Upon a Time. Chris went to his laptop and I resumed my video. I signed up with the interviewers website and got a video on shoulder stretches. I wrote up my blog post and was ready for bed.
* The cherry trees with compound flowers are blooming now. *

Pork and cabbage on toast

I got up at 7:30, put the food waste in the cannister and tagged it. Chris took it out to the curb. I went back to bed. It was so nice to snuggle in without hot flashes. I got up again at 10. I put on the third day of the Truth About Vaccines series. I drank a quart of water. Before it was over, Myra called to invite us to go walking with them. Chris was ok with that. So Chris shaved and took a shower. I made and ate breakfast. We walked down to their parking lot. They arrived shortly from the commissary. After they put their groceries away, we walked out into town. Scott wanted to visit a sporting goods store. He thought it was by McDonalds, but when we got there, we could not find it. Then we went to the fabric booth since it was so close.
I got another yard of stabilizer using a scrap to show what I wanted, and a yard of red polka dot. Myra got yellow thread and a zipper, and 7 bobbins. As we headed out of the market, I bought some cucumbers. Then we walked to the sporting goods store that I knew about. On the way we passed the Issac toast place. Chris wanted to try one of their sandwiches on toast. While he was trying to figure out which one, not being able to read the sign, Scott and Myra decided they wanted one also. They watched other people's orders being made. Finally Chris ordered one and it turned out to be a pork patty with a slice of wrapped cheese, and mutilated cabbage on toast. He ate it immediately while the Slaydons ordered one. Theirs was fried baloney and mutilated cabbage and a pre-wrapped cheese slice on toast with a sweet sauce and fried egg. We walked down to the sporting goods store. Chris and Scott went in while Myra and I crossed the street to the little park. We sat on a bench and chatted while she ate part of the toast sandwich. Then the guys joined us and Scott finished the sandwich. We talked about the United Air fiasco. Then we walked back to base, going by the canal where the flower shop was. I was able to resist buying flowers because the base is handing out free flowers on Thursday. But when I saw the tomato plants, I had to get some. They were three for $2. He did not give me the best three and I tried to trade out, but he would not let me. Then Scott told Myra to get some. And the man gave her the smaller ones too. We walked back to base. Chris went to work so I walked back with the Slaydens as far as their place. Then I went home. I ate some pineapple and a banana while I finished the vaccine video. I learned that Dr. Wakefield's study showed that it was safer to take the MMR vaccines in separate doses rather than all in one. But the drug companies preferred to sell it in combination, so they removed all the single dose vials from the market. Then Dr. Wakefield got branded as anti-vaccine. A pediatrician talked about seeing a rise in autism in his patients. So he devised his own vaccine schedule, putting off vaccines until age 3 because all the onsets of autism he'd seen happened before the age of three. His patient load went up because of all the parents that wanted his new schedule. The video also talked about rubella and how it was only a problem for pregnant women, but the vaccine is given to everyone, regardless.
I had sewn halfsquare triangles yesterday, so today I sewed them into pinwheel blocks and trimmed them. I also cut up some scraps into 3 inch segments for a future project. Chris came home from work and made himself supper to eat as he played his game. I went outside to plant the tomatoes and water everything. Then I cleared a bunch of e-mail. I wrote about it to my tapping buddy so she would know our tapping worked. I tried on my Easter dress with the purple bag I made and it seemed too big. So I sewed corner folds in it to give a more streamlined shape. I slathered myself in magnesium oil. I practiced my trombone. Waiting for Chris, I folded laundry, and jotted notes for my blog.
We watched two episodes. Then we checked e-mail one more time. Someone posted a link of a giraffe on camera in labor. I watched, but labor seemed slow. I saw the numbers of viewers go up to over 1 million. I posted to my blog and watched some more.

Spraying for centipedes

I got up before 7:30. I drank a quart of lemon water. I deleted the first round of e-mail. I got dressed and lowered the shade behind my laptop. It got caught on a dead plant I had forgotten was there. I removed the plant and cleaned up the debris. I e-mailed my tapping buddy to see if she was ready. She texted me back. Then Myra called. She wanted me to come over and join her and two other ladies for sewing. But I had to decline. I called my tapping buddy and we chatted about her progress from last week. Then we tapped on having too much e-mail. At 10:20 we decided to table the issue for next week.
After the call, I listened to the second day of The Truth about Vaccines. What I remembered was hearing that the safe amount of aluminum is said to be 5/kg, but vaccines have 200 – 800 each. How can we give HIB to newborns knowing it has 14 times the safe limit of aluminum? Polio diagnosis was redefined more stringently when the vaccine came out so diagnoses declined regardless of whether the vaccine was effective. Polio diagnosis chart mimics the DDT usage chart with a 6-month lag. DDT can cause paralysis, too. (There was other stuff too, but I can't remember it all.)
During the video, I made and ate breakfast. I also finished a Sudoku puzzle. After the video, I mixed up two batches of cedarwood spray and sprayed it where I found the centipede and all around the outside of the house.
Chris came home for lunch. He said he would be home late because of Good Friday mass and maybe a movie afterward. I blended up some lemon peels and poured it near the peas. Two of them have been nibbled on. Then I watered the plants and fertilized them.
I took a shower and put on a nicer outfit. I walked out to the massage place. The massage was good except for the part where he dug his elbow into my right butt cheek. Thankfully that did not last long. Afterward, I told him I'd be back next week, and walked home,
I listened to a podcast on the four things that stand in the way of living your life. I was reading e-mail at the same time and paused it several times to concentrate on what I was reading. I fell asleep. When I woke up, the audio was over. I ate some cucumber kimchi and roasted cabbage. Chris called to say he was going to the movie and would be home late. I put on an interview and took my laptop to the sewing room. I sewed up holes in Chris' socks. I cut up some scraps for a future project. I sewed the leftover corner triangles from all the baskets. I ate an apple and read e-mail. Chris came back from the movie. He called the states again, this time getting a real person. But she couldn't help and said she would pass on the information to someone who could.
We watched two episodes. And then it was time for bed.
* The last of the cherry blossoms. *

And so it begins...

I got up about quarter after 8. I drank a quart of water and deleted the first round of e-mail. I listened to some audios, one on chronic pain. He recommended rolling around on the floor, using different arms or legs each time. I made breakfast but left out the chia and flax seeds. That greatly reduced the bulk in the bowl. Chris came home for lunch. He brought two boxes from Swansons, one of which contained the cacao nibs I ran out of. There was an Easter card from Maryann. Chris told me he made the interview list for Fort Hood. I opened the boxes and made up a batch of supplements for the next 12 days. I finished the audio.
I got ready for my massage. On my way out, I noticed the peas and lettuce needed watering. So I quickly did that. Then I headed out to town. But when I got there, the man was busy. The lady at the front desk said that I had to wait 40 minutes (using her translator). So I decided to come back tomorrow. She asked me to make an appointment. So I said 3 o'clock. I walked into the every day market, but decided not to get anything. On the way home, I set my phone alarm for 2:25 so I would not forget my massage appointment. Going up the hill toward home, I saw Danielle and Terri on the playground with their dogs. I went down to greet them. After a nice chat, Terri went home and Danielle showed me her gardens; all around the building and by the sheds.
Then I went home. I ate some liver and onions. I looked for more onion soup but could not find any. I started eating a pineapple yesterday and had more today. I planted the top, which had been soaking in water since yesterday.
I started listening to Day 1 of The Truth about Vaccines. But 90 minutes later I had to pause it. I put on my shoes and went out to knock on Dynee's door. We walked to the chapel for the FRG meeting. The Catholics were already there (including Chris) for the Maundy Thursday mass. So we had to be quiet. We found 4 ladies already there. Dynee and I sat down. She put a plate of cookies on the table. Chief Hewett came in and ate about half. Amber started the meeting by saying how well the baby shower went. Then she discussed baked goods for command quarters (on the same day as the bus trip to Daegu fabric market). Then we discussed election of officers. She asked for nominations for president, vice-president and secretary. No one raised a hand. We discussed the funds, which are still in a box since no one wanted to give up their social security number to get an EIN to open a bank account. Myra had said I should volunteer for president, but with the funds still in a box, I just don't feel comfortable. So Amber said she would send a post asking for nominations and we would have an election on May 1st (if there were more than one per position.)
After the meeting, I saw Chris who said he had to go back to the office. I went to the FFTC to pay for the fabric trip. This time he was able to take my money and give me a receipt. Then I walked home.
I finished the Vaccine video. I listened to Day 2 of Oprah's series. I wrote up my day for my blog. I thought about eating supper, but my stomach was so bloated. And I couldn't figure out why. I practiced my trombone.
Coming out of the guest room, I spied something on the floor. A large centipede. I watched it for awhile and it didn't move. I had things to do, but did not want it to get away. I called Chris' office, but there was no answer. I called his cell phone, but did not get him. I watched it some more, then took it's picture. I wondered if there were any more I didn't know about. I called Chris' cell again. Still not getting an answer, I called Dynee. She had just answered the phone and listened to my tale of a centipede, when Chris arrived. Chris stomped on it, leaving a trail of innards. Ick!
Chris plugged my laptop up to the TV. I washed an apple and put it in the Magic Bullet with coconut water. I also added some cubes of frozen ginger tea. I ate that and we sat down to watch two episodes of Once Upon A Time. Chris scooped up the carcass and threw it away. I finished typing up my blog and went to bed.
* I can't believe centipedes are in season already. *

A tisket, a tasket, no more stabilizer for the basket

I got up before 8 to collate the recyclables. I put them by the door and Chris took them out when he left for work. I rinsed my broccoli seeds but they didn't look good. So I poured them out on the flower bed, hoping some would root. I cleaned the container. Yesterday I had put totally limp celery in a jar of water. This morning it was almost totally revived, but out of water. I poured in more. I also harvested three more containers of water from the shower filter. I drank a quart of lemon water and took some magnesium powder and citrus pectin.
I listened to an audio about the autoimmune paleo diet. I figured I could follow it for a day or two: no nuts, seeds, beans, tomatoes, rice, oatmeal, dairy, eggs, and some other things. I made a fabric egg up to the step just before turning it inside out.
Myra called to ask if I could sign Chantal onto post because she had a meeting at 1. I agreed. It was 11, so I finished cutting some stabilizer and took a shower. I collected scraps for class, and put the 15” ruler in my market bag. I walked down to the front gate where Chantal was waiting with her little one. I signed her on post and we walked to the chapel, she pushing the stroller uphill.
Some ladies were already there, setting up in Classroom 2. But I said I had been told someone had reserved classroom 2 so we moved to classroom 1. (That someone never showed up.) Myra came and so did Lacee, So Young, Dynee, Anna and Chong. Irene came for a short while. Most of them wanted to make baskets, but I only had enough for three. The others had to make eggs, as advertised on the community Facebook page. And Chong made a lot! I cut squares of fabric for the lucky three who were making the baskets. I played with Lydia so her mother could sew. Myra left early for her meeting. Dynee made another basket and helped Chantal with hers. But when Anna gave up on her dress and wanted to make a basket, Dynee gave her hers. Lacee worked on a dress she had a picture of. She brought an extra sewing machine and said we could keep it for classes. She said she had taught classes before (and I think she is willing to take over for Myra and me when we leave.) Chantal wanted to make a second basket for her other daughter. I told her all I had left were some scraps of stabilizer. She accepted and made them work. We packed up while she was still preparing the second basket. Then we waited for Anna to come get her stuff. When she did, we all left. I walked Chantal down to the front gate to sign her out.
I came home and ate the rest of the jar of onion soup. I also had some fresh coconut meat. I practiced napping for 22 minutes. Later, I practiced my trombone. Then I worked on my Easter dress. I hemmed it and tried it on. It was a little tight in the bust. Trying to let it out a litte, I noticed that the darts were only hand-basted. I ironed them, pinned them, removed the basting and sewed them. I laid down again, but only for a short while. Then I looked for something to eat. I had already had liver and onions, kimchi, cabbage pulp, celery, pineapple and onion soup. So I found something to drink; coconut water. I listened to Day One of Oprah's newest 21 day meditation.
I checked e-mail and saw that Tammy had messaged me on Facebook (2 hours ago). She thought her sewing machine was badly broken but wanted a second opinion. So I told her to come over. When she said she'd be here in half an hour, I rushed around cleaning the place up. Chris came home from work and made himself supper. I said a prayer, hoping that it was easy to fix and she could go home happy. I was cleaning up my sewing table when she arrived with her machine. We took it in my sewing room. She explained the problem. I took the bobbin area apart just as she had. I examined all the parts with my lighted magnifying lamp, but did not see any damage. I did see some lint so I pulled it out with the locking forceps Faye gave me a long time ago. Then I took off the needle plate and cleaned under there. I put the machine back together and she threaded it. I ran the hand wheel through a few stitches and it was fine. She plugged it up and sewed a line of stitches and they were fine. She was very happy. After she left, I told Chris I was ready to watch TV. But he was waiting for 9pm so he could call someplace in the states. So I read e-mail for a bit. I heard him go through a long line of “Press 1 now”, “Choose from the following menu:...” The last thing I heard was “We're sorry. This department is closed until 11:30am.” I could tell Chris was not happy. But he was right; customer service was not their strong point. He sat down and we watched one episode. It must have been the start of season 3. Then he went to bed and I wrote up my blog, wondering if my tapping buddy was going to show up tonight.
* Wish I had a 'before' pic. The difference from yesterday is dramatic. *

Egg-sample of our next project

Last night I was in bed when I suddenly realized I had forgotten to soak my broccoli sprouts. I rushed to the kitchen to handle that, then saw the food waste. I put it all in the container, some of it covered in mold. I put the tag in the slot and put it by the front door. Then I went back to bed. I realized that I had not had any hot flashes today or this evening.

I got up before 8 and saw that Chris had taken the food waste out. I cut up some lemon peel. I started an audio on how vaccines grown on animal cells contain retroviruses, which are not able to replicate, but when injected as part of a vaccine, they can be activated. Perfectly healthy people can keep them inactive, but when immunocompromised, they can get sick. These retroviruses transmit DNA codings from the animal DNA to human DNA. The retrovirus transcriptase has been noted in saliva of infected persons and can be aerosolized, infecting the people around them. Once infected, a person will pass these new DNA codings on to all their progeny for generations.
I rinsed my broccoli sprouts. Seems like they should have been bigger by now. I brushed my teeth with baking soda and then swished with vinegar. Then I swished with coconut oil for 20 minutes. I exercised, drybrushed and rebounded. I made coffee and tea. I drank a quart of water. I tapped and meditated. Then I cleaned the bathrooms and kitchen. I got dressed. Chris came home for lunch. He handed me a package and said the address fell off but the post office thought it was mine. There was a pattern inside. I looked at it. It did not seem familiar in any way. It had a USPS tracking number so Chris looked it up, but it did not say who was supposed to get it. I called Myra but it wasn't hers. I facebooked Lacee and she responded with a Yes! I was going to give it to her in class tomorrow, but Chris said it had to go back to the post office. So I gave it to him and he took it back along with her name so they could deliver it properly. I checked e-mail. I pulled up a pattern for a fabric egg online. I traced it off the screen. I made two cardboard templates, which I took to my fabric room to make an egg. I traced one on a scrap. Then my phone rang. Myra was ready to go. I called Dynee and she agreed to meet me outside. I put on my shoes and met her. We walked down to Myra's parking lot. Heading downhill, we ran into some other ladies and talked about the Beauty and the Beast party that we wanted to have but MWR hadn't planned.
We walked to the jewelry store. The lady did not have her tape measure and I did not have mine. So she used a piece of string. I put a $20 down payment on it. Myra bought three pairs of earrings there.
We walked back down the canal. Most of the cherry blossoms were gone. I thought we were going back to base, but we ended up in the market. We looked at store-fronts, seeing jewelry and headbands, clothing, crocheted animals, etc. We went to the fabric booth for stabilizer, but she didn't have it. Either sold out or she didn't understand what we wanted. I went to a nearby place to get apples. She also had small watermelons for $3. Dynee and I both got one.
Then on the way back, we stopped at the little market on the main street. Their strawberries were on sale so Dynee and I got some. I wondered what I was going to do with all this food. When we got to the corner market, Myra looked for tomatoes, and Dynee put her watermelon in my bag and carried it for me. Myra left us at the school.
Dynee and I went home. I put my berries in the freezer. I shoved the melon and apples wherever they would fit in the fridge. I took the lemon peels outside to spread in the front lawn. Dynee was out with her dog. We talked a bit longer. Then I went in. I pulled out a coconut, cracked it, and pried the meat out. I put that in the fridge. I ate some of the fermented cabbage pulp.
I finished the fabric egg and photographed it. I read some e-mail. I posted a pic of the egg to the Facebook page along with an announcement of tomorrow's class. I jotted notes for my blog. I made and ate breakfast. I read e-mail until Chris came home. I listened to one more video. Then we watched two episodes before going to bed. I stayed up long enough to blog my day.

Blueberry juice in the sauna

I got up about 7:20. I harvested water from the shower filter. I made up bottles with vitamin C and sea salt for the sauna. I started making breakfast while I drank my quart of water. I had to refill several containers. Chris called to make sure I was up. He said he needed bread. So I started a loaf of bread in the machine. I ate breakfast while listening to an audio. Then I got dressed and packed my sauna bag.
As I was walking towards Myra's place, she and Sue and Chong drove by and picked me up. Chong drove us to the charcoal sauna place. We put our shoes in lockers downstairs, then paid the entrance fee and received keys for the lockers upstairs, as well as towels and an outfit. We all trooped up to the ladies changing room. We changed into the red outfits and left everything but the water bottles in the lockers. Then we went back downstairs.
First we sat in the charcoal room. There was only a man in there. He told Chong we should not have water bottles in there – something about germs. So she and I took our bottles out and left them in the resting hallway. I call it a resting hallway because it is wide and has mats people lay on to rest between sweats. When I sensed that Myra was pretty uncomfortable there, I suggested we go into another room that was not so hot. Actually, the charcoal room is a myriad of temperatures, ranging from normal room temp to extremely hot, depending how close you sit to the fire pit. The other rooms are evenly heated. So we sat in the other room for awhile.
Then Sue and Chong popped their heads in to find us. They wanted to go to the salt room. So we did. No one was in there so we laid down on the salt stones. Half of the room was really hot, and that is where I laid down. I had to put my towel under my calves to protect them from the heat. The outfit protected the rest. It got very quiet in there and I could imagine all of us falling asleep. But eventually I had a feeling I should get up. I can't quite explain it. So I got up and left.
I sat in the hallway and drank water for awhile, then found another hot room to sit in. This one was empty. When I thought I heard English spoken in the hallway, I came out. But my friends were still in the salt room. I went into the charcoal room, but soon a man herded us all out so he could replace the charcoal. I went in another closer room. When they came out, they said we should break for lunch at noon. We sat in the medium heat room for half an hour. We all did stretches.
Then we went to lunch. The restaurant was built into the same edifice. We all had the seaweed soup. I had decided this morning to skip grains for a period of time, so I did not eat the rice. There were plenty of little side dishes, and a big bowl of soup. When I pulled the money out of my pocket, it was drenched in sweat. I apologized to the cashier. She gave me $6 in change since I paid for both Myra and myself. Then we wanted to soak our feet in the charcoal water, but the man drained it and said only on Sunday, Wednesday and Fridays. We sat in the medium heat room again, digesting lunch. Then we laid down in the salt room. I lasted longer this time. In fact, I was the last one to leave.
A lady popped her head in to say that there was going to be a presentation and whomever listened to it would get a $9 package of wet wipes. I did not care about that, but once all my friends were gone, I wanted to join them. Sue told me that the man was selling individual packets of pure concentrated blueberry juice. At the end, he passed out packets and I drank one. It was pretty good. I am guessing there was about 2 T in there. He claimed health benefits for those who drank one every day, twice a day for sick people. AND, for those who bought today, he would give three months supply for the one month price. It worked out to be about $2 a packet.
We sat in the medium heat room again. Then Myra and Sue went out. When Chong and I came out, Myra and Sue were there to tell us they had been in the heart room. They showed it to us – it had a hot tile floor and people were laying on it. There was a metal cylinder of aromatic herbs simmering. So Chong and I laid down for a bit.
But then we decided it was time to go. We went upstairs to the changing room. We took our showers and got dressed. We threw our outfits and towels in the large bins. I watched Myra twist her hair into a hairdo that looked like it was braided. Then we went down to get our shoes. Then we got in Chong's car and drove away.
But just as we got near the interstate, Myra asked if I had enough money for the jewelry and then I remembered the $6 in the pocket of my outfit. I wasn't sure it was worth it for a sweaty $6, but they went back. I hunted through the wet clothes and towels in the bin until I found mine and pulled the money out. And finally, we really were on our way back. Dynee texted me to go for a walk, but I had to say I wasn't home. Chong dropped Myra and me off at the Eco Park. We walked to the jewelry place, but the artist was not there. The lady in charge said to come back tomorrow. So we headed to base. We passed a place selling coconuts. Since it was the last day of the festival and many vendors had left, and not many people were walking around, I asked for a discount. The original price was $5 each. He lowered it to $4 and I tried to come up with a better offer. Myra suggested three for $10. He reluctantly accepted. He pulled out a cooler and selected three coconuts from it, put them in a bag and threw in some ice. I was surprised because I was expecting coconuts from the pile on the table in front of him. Anyway, I paid him and we parted happily. Myra and I looked at jewelry at one more place. We found our way back to post. But she went to the Nex while I went home.
I put down my three coconuts, which had gotten heavier on the way home. I heated a bowl of onion soup and made a green smoothie. Then I put on an old shirt and pants. Myra came to get me.
She drove us to Turtle Cove for the Corks and Canvas class. Dynee and Anna were already there. Some people had drinks. The small tables were set with canvasses and paints and brushes. Brittany showed us the target picture. I did not particularly care for it, but I had already paid for the class. She told us to spread orange paint over all the canvas except generally where the peacock should go. I watched people do this, but could not bring myself to dabble so. I got a pencil and sketched the peacock. THEN I started painting the background. I did not like the bright orange background because orange just never seems to go with anything decorative. So I mixed the red and orange together. In fact, I did a lot of color-mixing because I wanted more colors than she gave us. Not all the mixes turned out well. And I had trouble getting the colors in the right place because it seemed so free-form and yet my free-form did not look like the picture. In the end, I decided I would be happy if only I could make the black lines thinner on the crown. I tried to cover them with orange, but the black wasn't dry yet so it smeared. Brittany gave me some orange to take home. She took a picture of all of us showing off our work.
Then Myra and I went to her car. Anna and Mai and another lady got in the back. Myra took all of us home. I showed my picture to Chris and he said it was good. Then I cut up a piece of sugar cane while Chris hooked up my laptop. Then he showed me how he thought it should be cut up. We sat down to watch two episodes while I chewed the chunks of cane. He went to bed and I stayed up, hoping I could remember everything that happened today.