Weekly Chat Thread July 4th - 10th

[allikat]

I went to my best friends family reunion yesterday, I wavered until the last minute whether I was up to a social gathering. I have know her and her family for almost 40 years so they are sort of like family so I took a deep breath and went. I am so glad I did, it was great to talk to everyone and have a chance to just sit and talk to my friend as usually I visit her while she is working, she is the best seamstress in town specializes in costume and wedding dresses. I wish I could have tasted the food, I had a piece of Maple cake that I know was scratch made the icing had just the right amount of grit and creamy, cake was moist. And there was a pistachio cake that I know was fantastic also. I ate pieces of both because I needed the calories but I really wish I could have actually tasted and enjoyed them. I will dream about that maple cake, lol.

This is the first time that I have done anything outside a family get together or just going to get a beer with son and future DIL. I took my friend home and we sat on her porch and talked about everything and everyone, lol. It was a great day I am so glad I went.

It looks like a beautiful day here, no plans to watch fireworks just hanging out here today.

Happy 4th to everyone enjoy the day!

[staytuned]

Happy 4th of July to all.  May the backyard bbqs be merry and the fireworks be bright. To those setting off fireworks at home, please remember loud ones hurt sensitive pet ears and stress them out. Also, please be considerate and make sure you're done before it gets too late.

[labbypaws]

I bet it was great to get out!

I finalized my trip plans to western Ohio. Staying in Twinsburg on the way out and Bedford on the way back. Twinsburg is subject to change due to the rioting in Akron.

Great day today. Had planned on getting out walking but I had to get the house ready for the cleaners. I do too much before they come. Almost think I would be better with a housekeeper every 2 weeks. It is one of the pitfalls to having a lot of dogs.

All wound up and can’t sleep. Will be great to get back into the full swing of things next Wednesday.

[kritter]

[kritter]

I ate pieces of both because I needed the calories

LOL  Two thoughts that have never come together in words out of my mouth.

Have definitely eaten two pieces of cake at once but never because I needed the calories.

[labbypaws]

And the cleaners texted me. One girl is just getting over Covid but still,positive. I passed. I don’t need to carry it to my relatives. Not sure if I can do that at this point but I need to be careful. Plus hubby has not had it.

So I can relax tomorrow before going to work.

[Shirley U Geste]

Happy Bikini Day!

 

[jesmelric]

I hope everyone had a nice holiday weekend. The VV usually does 50% off over a 3 day holiday weekend. For some reason this year they did 30% Saturday, 40% Sunday, and 50% Monday. I finally decided to go Saturday for more selection and less crowding. I would probably have split the difference and gone Sunday but the kids were coming over. It wasn't too crowded and I didn't see them putting out much merchandise during the 3 1/2 hours I was there so I think I made the right decision. And had a great visit with the kids on Sunday too

Well something weird has happened and mom has apparently acquired a boyfriend at the facility and they want to get married so they can share a room. And this is for a week old romance. It's hard because mom moved out when we were kids and we lived with dad and so we don't know her as much as we otherwise would, but she does have a history of going overboard when she gets male attention. We went to see her yesterday and her cognizance had not had a sudden decline. She says this is what she wants and we should be happy for her. We don't really know anything about the guy other than he is old and in a wheelchair. She had a bad relationship that pretty much ended when she retired here 17 years ago and she has NEVER expressed the desire for a relationship/companionship or anything. In fact when I have fussed about DH she has said how she is SO GLAD she doesn't have to deal with men any more. I asked her why she never expressed a desire for this over the years and she said: I always wanted another relationship but I figured it wasn't going to happen for me so why mention it. And I don't know her well enough to know if that's her brain now, or herself as always. So the facility is going to do a cognitive evaluation on both of them and then I guess we'll see from there. It's not that we're not happy for her it's just that it was quite a shock (she didn't say ANYTHING last week, so I think it happened since last Monday) and number two we have a lot of bad history with her and her decisions over the years so this feels like more of the same. I can tell you it's the most unexpected thing that has happened to us in a long time lol.

I made some fresh blueberry muffins this morning and they stuck a lot to the pan, I guess DH is having blueberry crumbles 

We did not get much rain at all out of the system in the Gulf last week and now they are saying another heat ridge is building in so a repeat of the last month of HOT and dry is on tap. I just hate this summer so far lol. 

[val2525]

I got my Mac back this weekend. I had them install Mojave OS since Catalina made everything run really slow when I installed it earlier this year. However, I had to upgrade to Catalina after all if I wanted to use any of the MS Office products. So far, so good. Whatever was making the Mac slow before was not the OS. Which is probably why the Mac crashed   I ordered online from HEB in an effort to not buy anything I did not need.  Which is good. Except I forgot to add some things I did need.  Arrgghh.  Guess I'm making a HEB run after all.  At least my list will be short.  And I'll make myself stick to just the list    

[chapeaunoir]

jesmelric - oooh...romance at the rest home!  When my grandma was at the rest home, she had two "boyfriends" there - they would bring her ice cream and flirt and 'keep company'. Grandma was 96 years old and she used to joke about her boyfriends and say "well, you're never too old, I guess."  She was also the one who used to say "Men are like streetcars, there will be another along in 15 minutes." LOL. She was born in the late 1880s. She was a wonderful woman with a funny sense of humour.  However, she actually didn't want to remarry after grandpa died, even when the butcher down the street hinted at it when she was in her 80s. 

Honestly, they maybe should wait - it's not like either are going anywhere and once they're tacked, well...under those circumstances it could get complicated.  But I wish your mom every chance at happiness! 

So I went to the doctor about my heel and it turns out I have high blood pressure - I took some readings at home and it's still high. This is really odd and I'm the last person to suffer from such a thing, I would think. No family history, I'm active and of normal weight (though I dropped 10 lb and could drop another 10 lb if it would keep me off medication) and have 0 health problems. We don't have a history of heart disease in my family.  I wonder where this came up?  I've taken more salt out of my diet, changing some stuff around and ordered some DAK spice blends for cooking, but I'm not sure about taking this medication.  The DH is encouraging me to do so, as long as it doesn't slow me down or affect athletic performance (he asked about that several times) - the doc says it does not.  He has a history of high BP in his family but manages it with diet and keeping his weight down - he's really strict about sodium, much better at it than I am. ::side eye::

[val2525]

chapeaunoir, you might still be eating more sodium than you think. You won't know how much you consume daily until you track EVERYTHING that you put in your mouth (including gum, toothpaste, etc) for a few days. Your actual consumption might surprise you. Also, too much sugar (in any form) will raise blood pressure even more than sodium does, and so do foods with flour in them. If I'm eating a high sodium meal (high for me LOL), if I take an equal amount of potassium with the meal I don't have any issues. But if I have anything high sugar, there isn't anything I can do except wait the symptoms out. If you don't want to take the BP meds, google treating HBP with natural supplements. I know vitamin C and Magnesium can help.

Another thought - you might have secondary high blood pressure, which means it's being caused by something else going on. What kind of doc did you see for your foot? Regular GP, podiatrist, sports medicine? It could be that the issue is something with your foot/ankle/hip the doc didn't catch and the high blood pressure is a side effect, not the cause. Can't hurt to get a second opinion. Many docs are bad about blowing off women, not listening, and underdiagnosing or diagnosing the wrong thing.

[denise15601]

Jes-that is kind of funny. My mom was married 5 times and she cheated so much on my poor father. She finally left us when I was 11, and married that guy...then on to 2 more guys.

She had broken her wrist several years before she passed away. I don't know how she managed to stay so long in the nursing home, but managed to "steal" the boyfriends of two of the ladies who lived there. And they got into a lot of fights, to the point where the nursing home had to step in and discipline her. Always drama with my mom and men.

Chap-not sure if I wrote here about my BP which fluctuates wildly. Now my chemo tanks it. I have been trying for years to figure out why I am so darned tired and just within the last few weeks, I figured it out....my BP which might be 150/80 before lunch or dinner, will go as low as 75/50 after I eat.

And if I go out to do yardwork when it is hot, that also tanks my BP. Apparently, this is a "thing" with BP, for some people.

So I don't dare to take my BP pills until I check to see if my BP is high. I don't know if you will be affected after running or biking.

Sodium is not my problem since mine is always low so I have been "forced" to eat potato chips daily. LOL. love it.

[allikat]

My friend works in a nursing home around here and she said there is a surprising amount of sexually transmitted diseases being passed around. She is like... more power to them but I wish they would be safe.

[denise15601]

Jul 5, 2022 22:25:04 GMT allikat said:

My friend works in a nursing home around here and she said there is a surprising amount of sexually transmitted diseases being passed around. She is like... more power to them but I wish they would be safe.

That is often the subject on various doctor shows like the Good Doctor.  

[labbypaws]

Jul 5, 2022 17:53:01 GMT jesmelric said:

Well something weird has happened and mom has apparently acquired a boyfriend at the facility and they want to get married so they can share a room. And this is for a week old romance. It's hard because mom moved out when we were kids and we lived with dad and so we don't know her as much as we otherwise would, but she does have a history of going overboard when she gets male attention. We went to see her yesterday and her cognizance had not had a sudden decline. She says this is what she wants and we should be happy for her. We don't really know anything about the guy other than he is old and in a wheelchair. She had a bad relationship that pretty much ended when she retired here 17 years ago and she has NEVER expressed the desire for a relationship/companionship or anything. In fact when I have fussed about DH she has said how she is SO GLAD she doesn't have to deal with men any more. I asked her why she never expressed a desire for this over the years and she said: I always wanted another relationship but I figured it wasn't going to happen for me so why mention it. And I don't know her well enough to know if that's her brain now, or herself as always. So the facility is going to do a cognitive evaluation on both of them and then I guess we'll see from there. It's not that we're not happy for her it's just that it was quite a shock (she didn't say ANYTHING last week, so I think it happened since last Monday) and number two we have a lot of bad history with her and her decisions over the years so this feels like more of the same. I can tell you it's the most unexpected thing that has happened to us in a long time lol.

I think it is a nursing home thing.  Some guy proposed to my mom at day care and wanted my mom to get a wedding dress.  Just "hope" they find one or the other not competent to make their own decisions.  It took a bit but the man finally stopped.  Just make sure the staff know not to allow her to get married on the sly.  It can also affect any aid she gets there with paying her way.  Just not a good idea at all.

[labbypaws]

Jul 5, 2022 19:58:08 GMT chapeaunoir said:

So I went to the doctor about my heel and it turns out I have high blood pressure - I took some readings at home and it's still high. This is really odd and I'm the last person to suffer from such a thing, I would think. No family history, I'm active and of normal weight (though I dropped 10 lb and could drop another 10 lb if it would keep me off medication) and have 0 health problems. We don't have a history of heart disease in my family.  I wonder where this came up?  I've taken more salt out of my diet, changing some stuff around and ordered some DAK spice blends for cooking, but I'm not sure about taking this medication.  The DH is encouraging me to do so, as long as it doesn't slow me down or affect athletic performance (he asked about that several times) - the doc says it does not.  He has a history of high BP in his family but manages it with diet and keeping his weight down - he's really strict about sodium, much better at it than I am. ::side eye::

I would do anything I could to keep off the big pharma merry go round.  Hopefully it drops for you.

[blissfullymiserable]

Been taking blood pressure med for about 6 years. Maybe 20 lbs overweight, high bp is hereditary for me. I've noticed zero side effects from the bp med. Mine has a built in water pill. First try was the same med without the water pill and I had some issues so PA added the water pill. Very leery of taking any other prescribed medications unless it's as needed. My cholesterol came back high a few years ago so meds were discussed for that but I was dabbling in KETO at the time. Immediately stopped the diet and so far it's been in normal ranges since.

[val2525]

I was worried about Simon playing too rough with Twila but apparently I don't need to bother. She just took a flying leap out of nowhere and landed on Simon. It was pretty funny. She's holding her own with him. Simon and I still can't play fetch though. Twila will also run after the toy but she won't bring it back. Simon runs after the toy, looks at the toy and Twila, then gives me a sad "I can't take that toy away from her, it would be rude" look.

[kritter]

Twila was brought up around Terrell and the Missy family.

They take no prisoners. There is always a rumble going on here.

[sunsetpainter]

High BP runs in my family from all sides. I take 2 different BP meds just to keep it at normal.

About 7 - 8 years ago, my chiropractor started taking BP readings in his office. The first time they did this I got some very strange looks. He made me sit down and asked if I was feeling ok and I told him I was feeling fine, because I WAS feeling fine. He told me my BP was about 190 / 120, or something like that. He did my back adjustment and then took it again. It was down to around 160/90 -ish, and he told me to get my a$$ to my regular doctor ASAP! I never ever felt anything amiss before the BP meds and didn't feel any changes after I started taking them. My BP is now normal, running around 115-120 / 75 average. I guess that's why they call it the silent killer. I never felt anything was wrong and never would have known if my chiropractor hadn't taken my BP that day.

I also have what they call White Coat Syndrome. My BP shoots up at the beginning of any DR. visit, so I tell them to take it at the end of the visit. I really don't know why this happens because I'm generally a very chill person. I'm not nervous or stressed at the doctor's or at home either, for that matter. Just something deeply psychological that I don't know about I guess.

[denise15601]

Be still, my heart...My grandson was at a local pool/activity camp today and I heard a police call to send police to the pool for a "hostile person".
I texted my daughter to see if Jaxson was at the pool, so she called and was told that he was playing basketball inside the activity building, thank God.
Still don't know what it was all about.

Before I started my latest chemo, my systolic BP was usually over 200 at my chemo center. And that set off the alarms. So I had to get a stress test and see a heart dr. Everything was okay, so I had to take hydrochlorothiazide and potassium pills, plus a BP med.

Now that I have been on my current chemo for 4.5 years, my sodium at first was critically low. So I had to quit the pills and take a lower BP med dose. And now I have to monitor myself constantly.

Apparently, I also have the white coat syndrome, unless I take my BP med before my appt.

[val2525]

If my BP is too high when the dr office takes it, I ask them to give me a minute and take it again. I got pretty good at lowering my BP and pulse fairly quickly when I had the months of uncontrolled afib.

[denise15601]

Since I have bilateral lymphedema, I have to have the BP taken on my thigh and that is always higher. So I always take my wrist monitor which registers lower, and they accept that.

[Emerald_Door]

I have always had low blood pressure, but I know that untreated high blood pressure can lead to kidney disease, in addition to all the other things you've heard about.

[labbypaws]

Headed out to western Ohio over the next two days for a family reunion. Stopping in Twinsburg, OH overnight. Returning home Sunday. Stopping west of Breezewood on my way home. Hubby will have dog duty until Monday afternoon.

[chapeaunoir]

I'm going to be seeing my regular doc in two weeks and we'll discuss further. I have 'white coat syndrome' also, but I started taking my BP at home and by golly, it's in the 140s/70s. My take on the sodium is that I'm going to steadily cut out any visible sodium I can (i.e., be better about reading labels, quit most processed foods) - I don't salt my food but I was using soy sauce. I don't consume much sugar as I don't have a sweet tooth, but I'll start looking at labels for that, too - I know they sneak the stuff in anywhere they can. It's a good thing I'm not much of a foodie, as I can see this pretty much banishing any interest in food I have left. Maybe a pub meal every week or two to remind me that stuff still tastes good. 

I had no idea that nursing homes were such hotbeds of intrigue, but I guess I'm not that surprised - people don't lose all their faculties just because they get old and there they are, all in this one place, trying to occupy themselves. 

ETA:  The PA I see is a young woman who is very tuned into good health care for women. 

[denise15601]

Yes, soy sauce is very high in sodium. I should use it, but soy feeds breast cancer...so that is out.

[blissfullymiserable]

I think white coat syndrome is a pretty common thing. For a while I slid by without BP meds, it would intially be high at the first check when at the Dr's office then they'd leave me sit for a short while after the appt and retake it. It would be better but was still usually slightly elevated. Then at some point I had to cave and start and start taking the med. Glad we found one that worked well without too much trouble. I'd love to lose 20 lbs to see if it would go down but I'm pretty sure that'll never ever happen.

[val2525]

Soy sauce is higher in sodium, per serving, than salt. BTW, once you get the hang of it, eating low sodium isn't all that bad. I eat low sodium and my consumption ranges from 1,000-1,500 a day, now and then maybe up to 1,800 if I'm eating out.  The American Heart Association recommends a max of 1,500 mg/day as ideal, but no higher than 2,300 mg/day. The average American diet is higher, around 3,400 mg/day. If you cook fresh, you can significantly reduce your sodium and still have good tasting food. I know when I was baking this past weekend, I cut the salt in the recipes by anywhere from 50%-75% and no one noticed.  When I roast veggies, I don't add salt but I do use herb infused oils. I have lemon olive oil, basil olive oil, assorted mixed herb versions, etc.  I roasted cauliflower in the air fryer last night using Mantova's lemon olive oil, and I added Mantova's Tuscan Herb olive oil to the mushrooms.  I didn't need to add salt at all.  

[chapeaunoir]

Yes! The White Coat Hypertension is real!  Now I have a complex about my BP so it's even worse. 

I've started logging my food - I've never done this before, but figured if I have to whack the sodium, I may as well do it right as it's so insidious. I eat mostly Asian style so it'll be interesting - fortunately, there are recipe adaptations, including an apparently creditable soy sauce substitute made from portabello mushrooms. Right now I'm eating kim chee, but only half what I used to and I also quit eating it out of the jar. Managed sushi the other night with just one half teaspoon of soy sauce, etc. etc.  Baby steps.  I'm hoping by dropping that 10 lb and learning better sodium habits I can get back off the BP med. Honestly, this is probably for the best because I get terribly lazy about eating - I either skip meals or just get a pile of Lean Cuisine and a bag of rice and veg and live on that, some canned beans, etc.,  using lashings of soy sauce and the like.  

My dad was kind of living on Lean Cuisine when he got older - they could get it cheap because of my stepmom's former employment.  He would stuff his freezer full of it.  Once I was reaching into my freezer and saw my piles of Lean Cuisine and thought "OMG, I'm turning into my dad!" lol.