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365 Questions 2025
Jul. 9th, 2025 12:10 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
maju8. What do you do to deliberately impress others? Nothing conscious.
9. What will you never do? Go to Florida. Eat snails.
9. What will you never do? Go to Florida. Eat snails.
maju(no subject)
Jul. 8th, 2025 02:12 pmmajuWith the weather being so warm and humid these past couple of weeks I've been very unmotivated to do any running. I've been walking instead, and even that isn't much fun although I do feel good that I did it. Checking back in my LJ, I discovered that two years ago I was doing a lot more running in the summer than I am this year. I seem to have become less motivated this summer. I spent most of last summer in Connecticut and I didn't do much running there because there are no trails and barely any footpaths around my daughter's, plus it was very hot for most of the time I was there. I did walk most days and I did do some running; the neighbourhood streets are fairly quiet and feel safe enough but it's just not as pleasant as it is around here. I don't feel that I'm lacking energy, just motivation. (On the occasional cooler mornings I do go for a run.)
On the clearing out front, my daughter introduced me to a recycling service (trashie.com) which will accept all kinds of fabrics (including socks and underwear) as well as old phones, tablets, and laptops and associated cables/cords. The small catch is that you have to pay for bags (for fabrics) or a box (for tech), but return shipping is free. You order your bags or box/es, stuff them as full as you can, take them to UPS, and done. I've been taking unused clothes to Goodwill, but I haven't known what to do with old computers etc, so this service sounds great to me. I've ordered two boxes because I've got too many old laptops, tablets, and phones for one.
On the clearing out front, my daughter introduced me to a recycling service (trashie.com) which will accept all kinds of fabrics (including socks and underwear) as well as old phones, tablets, and laptops and associated cables/cords. The small catch is that you have to pay for bags (for fabrics) or a box (for tech), but return shipping is free. You order your bags or box/es, stuff them as full as you can, take them to UPS, and done. I've been taking unused clothes to Goodwill, but I haven't known what to do with old computers etc, so this service sounds great to me. I've ordered two boxes because I've got too many old laptops, tablets, and phones for one.
365 Questions 2025
Jul. 7th, 2025 04:16 pmmaju4. What is the most valuable life lesson you learned from your parents? You have to be independent because you can't depend on other people who should care about you to have your back.
5. What does love feel like? It feels safe.
6. What are your favorite simple pleasures? Reading a book, eating ice cream, watching a good show, going for a walk on a nice day.
7. If you could go back in time and tell a younger version of yourself one thing, what would you tell? Your life will turn out in ways you could never imagine.
5. What does love feel like? It feels safe.
6. What are your favorite simple pleasures? Reading a book, eating ice cream, watching a good show, going for a walk on a nice day.
7. If you could go back in time and tell a younger version of yourself one thing, what would you tell? Your life will turn out in ways you could never imagine.
(no subject)
Jul. 7th, 2025 04:10 pmmajuAfter a couple of cooler low humidity nights, it's back to more normal conditions for this time of year: stifling humid nights when the temperature doesn't fall below about 74°F/24°C. Ugh. I think we had a tiny bit of rain during the night and I know it rained lightly for a while this morning, but the rain just helped the humidity stay high.
I've been working away at flower granny squares for the last few days. I get one done every day while I'm watching a show, and I've basically got the pattern memorised now.
I've been working away at flower granny squares for the last few days. I get one done every day while I'm watching a show, and I've basically got the pattern memorised now.
Cast Still On
Jul. 6th, 2025 09:08 pmiosonochesonoMy wrist still had no mobility and was very sore outside the cast, add that to having a dog at home and the Orthopaedic surgeon recommended keeping a cast on two more weeks (which ended up being three due to a bank holiday).
I'm starting to try to take the dog walking and training classes more seriously and pick up more hours (and/or find a weekend job) as I really want to do a minimum 5% overpayment per month average on the mortgage (preferably 10%). I also want to rebuild savings after everything that happened and the house purchase. Unfortunately I've had zero luck finding a weekend job.
The bright side of this is that I didn't buy the house solo, and for now my partner in crime is chucking more in to match up my overpayments so far. So we do have savings (and insurance which includes emergency repairs). Just not as much as I like, especially because...
Patrick has had someone at work come to him and ask him to sign as guarantor. Oof. He's known the guy for four years and trusts him, but I am super wary and wanting to be prepared in case they flake out. Originally I was going to say no-can-do. I mean, we have not even been here a full six months. It's not like half the mortgage is paid and if the guy flakes out we can take a loan for a year's rent and only be a little in the hole, it's finding a way to pay rent a whole year for a house on top of our mortgage hole. And even if he trusts the guy, well, his trust-dar is not the best.
But in the end I told him ok.
First, the guy is here on a Visa and immigrants have a hard enough time here. I mean, there are literal progroms going on. Diversity is not a bad thing here.
Second, Patrick's worked with him four years.
Third, I feel like people helped us when we needed help - including Patrick's parents who signed as a guarantor for me because estate agents here wouldn't let anyone outside of Northern Ireland sign as a guarantor for me. Deborah housed us while we were looking for a house. So it's important to pay that forward, do unto others as you would want done unto you and all that.
He also said the guy is trying to get into cybersecurity and will hopefully be in a much higher paying job in a few months, but I take that with a grain of salt, same as I'm trying to become a nurse and project manager or Patrick's trying to become a regional manager. We all have aspirations, we don't all make them.
So as the other saying goes, hope for the best and expect the worst. I am trying to take earning more money much more seriously in case the worst should happen. Similarly I did tell Patrick that if he is signing as a guarantor for this guy he needs to be prepared that he might need to take up a second job up to a year to cover the lease until it completes.
And who knows, maybe paying it forward will bring karma back around to us. Maybe I'll get a job at the organisation just three minutes away by bicycle. If I did that £310/month I'd save would make it much easier for us to cover if the guy took off.
I'm starting to try to take the dog walking and training classes more seriously and pick up more hours (and/or find a weekend job) as I really want to do a minimum 5% overpayment per month average on the mortgage (preferably 10%). I also want to rebuild savings after everything that happened and the house purchase. Unfortunately I've had zero luck finding a weekend job.
The bright side of this is that I didn't buy the house solo, and for now my partner in crime is chucking more in to match up my overpayments so far. So we do have savings (and insurance which includes emergency repairs). Just not as much as I like, especially because...
Patrick has had someone at work come to him and ask him to sign as guarantor. Oof. He's known the guy for four years and trusts him, but I am super wary and wanting to be prepared in case they flake out. Originally I was going to say no-can-do. I mean, we have not even been here a full six months. It's not like half the mortgage is paid and if the guy flakes out we can take a loan for a year's rent and only be a little in the hole, it's finding a way to pay rent a whole year for a house on top of our mortgage hole. And even if he trusts the guy, well, his trust-dar is not the best.
But in the end I told him ok.
First, the guy is here on a Visa and immigrants have a hard enough time here. I mean, there are literal progroms going on. Diversity is not a bad thing here.
Second, Patrick's worked with him four years.
Third, I feel like people helped us when we needed help - including Patrick's parents who signed as a guarantor for me because estate agents here wouldn't let anyone outside of Northern Ireland sign as a guarantor for me. Deborah housed us while we were looking for a house. So it's important to pay that forward, do unto others as you would want done unto you and all that.
He also said the guy is trying to get into cybersecurity and will hopefully be in a much higher paying job in a few months, but I take that with a grain of salt, same as I'm trying to become a nurse and project manager or Patrick's trying to become a regional manager. We all have aspirations, we don't all make them.
So as the other saying goes, hope for the best and expect the worst. I am trying to take earning more money much more seriously in case the worst should happen. Similarly I did tell Patrick that if he is signing as a guarantor for this guy he needs to be prepared that he might need to take up a second job up to a year to cover the lease until it completes.
And who knows, maybe paying it forward will bring karma back around to us. Maybe I'll get a job at the organisation just three minutes away by bicycle. If I did that £310/month I'd save would make it much easier for us to cover if the guy took off.
(no subject)
Jul. 6th, 2025 03:34 pmmajuI seem to have a new sleep pattern lately. I have a few bad nights in a row, where I can't get to sleep or I wake up too early or I wake up often during the night, then comes a night where I can't keep my eyes open for long enough to stay up until my normal bedtime. Last night was the night for not being able to stay awake, and I slept well, but still felt slightly tired when I got up this morning.
Today's photo prompt is "urgent", so I walked over to the nearby Urgent Care place to take a photo of all their signage, then continued on to the nearest Giant supermarket to take a photo of their signage for an upcoming prompt of "giant". The walk to and from Giant turned out to be slightly longer than I had thought and I ended up covering about 8 km/5 miles. I wasn't unhappy about that but I was getting very hungry by the time I got home as I'd only had one piece of toast at around 5 am before I left.
When I got back I found my new phone had been delivered in my absence, so after breakfast I spent about an hour getting it set up. The thing that took the longest was transferring my Signal account over from my old phone, but that was essential because that's what we use for the photo challenges.
It's not extremely hot today (about 28°C/83°F) but it's cloudy and feels very oppressive and the forecast says there's a chance of showers.
Today's photo prompt is "urgent", so I walked over to the nearby Urgent Care place to take a photo of all their signage, then continued on to the nearest Giant supermarket to take a photo of their signage for an upcoming prompt of "giant". The walk to and from Giant turned out to be slightly longer than I had thought and I ended up covering about 8 km/5 miles. I wasn't unhappy about that but I was getting very hungry by the time I got home as I'd only had one piece of toast at around 5 am before I left.
When I got back I found my new phone had been delivered in my absence, so after breakfast I spent about an hour getting it set up. The thing that took the longest was transferring my Signal account over from my old phone, but that was essential because that's what we use for the photo challenges.
It's not extremely hot today (about 28°C/83°F) but it's cloudy and feels very oppressive and the forecast says there's a chance of showers.
(no subject)
Jul. 5th, 2025 02:06 pmmajuI did another stupid thing yesterday evening; I remembered to put my loaf of sourdough bread in the fridge before it rose too much, but when I got up this morning I discovered I hadn't closed the fridge door properly (it doesn't close all the way by itself, you have to make sure you push it fully closed yourself) and the dough had risen too much and then deflated anyway. It will still make good toast but it isn't a pretty sight. Plus now I'm worried the milk will go off before it's use by date.
I walked to parkrun this morning (and then of course had to walk home an hour or two later when the temperature was higher). I managed to run the 5 km course but I kept to a slow and steady pace. It was hard work and of course I ended up very sweaty but I was satisfied that I'd done it. I walked home the slightly shorter way on the trail (rather than on the road) where it's mostly shaded, and the walk was quite pleasant.
I decided to order a new phone instead of trying to use one of the ones already in the house, because I suddenly remembered while I was trying to get to sleep last night (while loud fireworks were going off in the neighbourhood keeping me awake) that there might be a problem with the size of the SIM card. I think the very old RCA phone uses a bigger SIM card so I won't be able to put the very small card from my broken phone into it. I took the SIM card out of S's old phone and discovered it is the very small size and the phone could therefore take the small SIM from my Pixel phone, but I'm really reluctant to use that phone. I've ordered a Pixel 7. The latest version is Pixel 9, but I never order the latest model as older models are cheaper and I can't see any benefit to paying more for the latest model.
My sister has been discharged from hospital and seems to be doing very well in spite of an incision running for about 7 inches/18 cm down over her stomach. She is not allowed to lift anything heavier than 2 kg for six weeks (and she has two small grandchildren she babysits frequently), and was told she should work up to walking for about 30 minutes in one to two weeks - at which she quietly snickered, as she normally runs every day for a couple of hours, and longer on weekends. She won't be running for six weeks, but she will definitely be walking for more than 30 minutes very soon.
I walked to parkrun this morning (and then of course had to walk home an hour or two later when the temperature was higher). I managed to run the 5 km course but I kept to a slow and steady pace. It was hard work and of course I ended up very sweaty but I was satisfied that I'd done it. I walked home the slightly shorter way on the trail (rather than on the road) where it's mostly shaded, and the walk was quite pleasant.
I decided to order a new phone instead of trying to use one of the ones already in the house, because I suddenly remembered while I was trying to get to sleep last night (while loud fireworks were going off in the neighbourhood keeping me awake) that there might be a problem with the size of the SIM card. I think the very old RCA phone uses a bigger SIM card so I won't be able to put the very small card from my broken phone into it. I took the SIM card out of S's old phone and discovered it is the very small size and the phone could therefore take the small SIM from my Pixel phone, but I'm really reluctant to use that phone. I've ordered a Pixel 7. The latest version is Pixel 9, but I never order the latest model as older models are cheaper and I can't see any benefit to paying more for the latest model.
My sister has been discharged from hospital and seems to be doing very well in spite of an incision running for about 7 inches/18 cm down over her stomach. She is not allowed to lift anything heavier than 2 kg for six weeks (and she has two small grandchildren she babysits frequently), and was told she should work up to walking for about 30 minutes in one to two weeks - at which she quietly snickered, as she normally runs every day for a couple of hours, and longer on weekends. She won't be running for six weeks, but she will definitely be walking for more than 30 minutes very soon.
(no subject)
Jul. 4th, 2025 12:35 pmmajuMy morning started off okay even though I was awake well before my alarm went off and ended up getting up early. It was a pleasantly mild morning (about 19°C/67°F) and I was very much enjoying my walk, stopping to take photos every so often for the photo challenge, until I dropped my phone getting it out of my pocket, and the screen smashed. The phone still works but there are cracks all over the screen. I'm really annoyed with myself. I do actually have a couple of other phones I could use. One is a very old cheap RCA phone I bought to try out using a smartphone, and the other is what used to be S's phone, a Samsung Galalxy-something. The RCA phone is lighter and smaller than any phone I've had since but the camera quality isn't great. The Samsung seems to be good quality but is horribly hard to use. S used to really struggle with it because the on-screen keyboard was very cramped, and I have the same problem. I don't understand how two phones which are about the same size (my now-damaged Pixel phone and the Samsung) could give such different keyboard experiences. Yes, the Pixel keyboard is small because it's on a phone, but it's definitely not as fiddly to use as the one on the Samsung. I'll probably keep using the broken Pixel until the end of the month (i.e. until the end of the current photo challenge, because everything is set up on that phone to take photos and easily share them to Signal) and then put the SIM card into one of the other phones. (Unless pieces of screen start falling out…)
I walked home past the post office and stopped to look at the sign up sheets for the Fourth of July Fun Run just because, not because I was planning to run in it. I was glad I'd made that decision, because unlike previous years when they've had a category for women over 60, this year the highest level was "Masters - Women 40+, and there's no way I want to be in a category with women more than 30 years younger than me. It's not a race, but they do note who comes first in each category and make an announcement at the lunchtime gathering. Looking at the categories, I was impressed that there was one for "Non-binary", although no age was given for that and at the time I was there, nobody had put their name in that group.
This feels like the most pleasant weather we've ever had for this holiday. Usually it's at least 90°F/30°+C; right now it's still only about 78°F/25°C. In spite of the weather, I chose not to attend the festivities this year. It's not *my* holiday.
I walked home past the post office and stopped to look at the sign up sheets for the Fourth of July Fun Run just because, not because I was planning to run in it. I was glad I'd made that decision, because unlike previous years when they've had a category for women over 60, this year the highest level was "Masters - Women 40+, and there's no way I want to be in a category with women more than 30 years younger than me. It's not a race, but they do note who comes first in each category and make an announcement at the lunchtime gathering. Looking at the categories, I was impressed that there was one for "Non-binary", although no age was given for that and at the time I was there, nobody had put their name in that group.
This feels like the most pleasant weather we've ever had for this holiday. Usually it's at least 90°F/30°+C; right now it's still only about 78°F/25°C. In spite of the weather, I chose not to attend the festivities this year. It's not *my* holiday.
welp
Jul. 4th, 2025 11:24 amjazzfishIn Minneapolis, where it is overly Warm but where there were decent fireworks and a lightning-filled thunderhead last night. Feeling some kind of way about the political situation, for sure.
Have some links.
UPDATE! Breaking News: Everything Is Bad. (This is absolutely worth your two and a half minutes, I promise.)
Edward Gorey’s "Great Simple Theory About Art" is essential reading for writers: "[T]he theory ... that anything that is art ... is presumably about some certain thing, but is really always about something else, and it’s no good having one without the other, because if you just have the something it is boring and if you just have the something else it's irritating." That last bit puts me in mind of James Nicoll's "I don't object to hidden depths but I insist that there be a surface."
ICEBlock: "ICEBlock is an innovative, completely anonymous crowdsourced platform that allows users to report Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity with just two taps on their phone." US only, and iOS only at the moment. Via jwz, who notes "The cowards at Time wrote a whole article about the app and didn't include a link to it".
methaphone: "methaphone can help you manage cravings and withdrawal symptoms. It can fill that hole in your back pocket. ... methaphone looks like a simple acrylic slab -- and it is." I kinda want one. (I am a sucker for glass and lucite.)
Have some links.
UPDATE! Breaking News: Everything Is Bad. (This is absolutely worth your two and a half minutes, I promise.)
Edward Gorey’s "Great Simple Theory About Art" is essential reading for writers: "[T]he theory ... that anything that is art ... is presumably about some certain thing, but is really always about something else, and it’s no good having one without the other, because if you just have the something it is boring and if you just have the something else it's irritating." That last bit puts me in mind of James Nicoll's "I don't object to hidden depths but I insist that there be a surface."
ICEBlock: "ICEBlock is an innovative, completely anonymous crowdsourced platform that allows users to report Immigration and Customs Enforcement (ICE) activity with just two taps on their phone." US only, and iOS only at the moment. Via jwz, who notes "The cowards at Time wrote a whole article about the app and didn't include a link to it".
methaphone: "methaphone can help you manage cravings and withdrawal symptoms. It can fill that hole in your back pocket. ... methaphone looks like a simple acrylic slab -- and it is." I kinda want one. (I am a sucker for glass and lucite.)
(no subject)
Jul. 3rd, 2025 11:59 ammajuMy sister appears to be recovering nicely from her surgery. She has had some tubes removed and has been up and walking (with help).
After a busy few days to start the week I decided that today should be the start of the holiday weekend for me. Not that I need a holiday weekend; every day is basically a holiday for me. I did get a load of washing (sheets and towels) out on the line, but that never feels like work to me.
I've been neglecting my 15 minutes of clearing out though, so today I went back to that. In my office/workroom is a closet full of "stuff" - sewing stuff, Christmas stuff (mainly wrapping paper), photos, and lots of other bits and pieces, so today I started with just one of the shelves and ended up throwing out a lot of what was there. There were some old family photos and some education documents that I'm keeping, but those don't add up to much. I threw away more than I'm keeping.
Last night was marginally cooler than the previous few but very humid. I went for a run at 6:30 am and for the whole hour I felt like I was trying to run uphill. Of course for every uphill there has to be a downhill, but it was hard work because of the humidity. The humidity has gone way down now - it's below 50%! - but it's sunny and hot outside.
LJ is still not working perfectly; it takes forever to load my friends' page although everything else loads normally.
After a busy few days to start the week I decided that today should be the start of the holiday weekend for me. Not that I need a holiday weekend; every day is basically a holiday for me. I did get a load of washing (sheets and towels) out on the line, but that never feels like work to me.
I've been neglecting my 15 minutes of clearing out though, so today I went back to that. In my office/workroom is a closet full of "stuff" - sewing stuff, Christmas stuff (mainly wrapping paper), photos, and lots of other bits and pieces, so today I started with just one of the shelves and ended up throwing out a lot of what was there. There were some old family photos and some education documents that I'm keeping, but those don't add up to much. I threw away more than I'm keeping.
Last night was marginally cooler than the previous few but very humid. I went for a run at 6:30 am and for the whole hour I felt like I was trying to run uphill. Of course for every uphill there has to be a downhill, but it was hard work because of the humidity. The humidity has gone way down now - it's below 50%! - but it's sunny and hot outside.
LJ is still not working perfectly; it takes forever to load my friends' page although everything else loads normally.
(no subject)
Jul. 2nd, 2025 04:34 pmmajuYesterday afternoon and into the evening we had a succession of dramatic thunderstorms and a lot of heavy rain, but today the weather seems to have cleared up and the temperature is much lower than it has been for the last few days. It's still going to be in the 80s/20s for the next few days, but not the 90s/30s we've been having, and the nights will be a lot cooler - actually around 68°F/20°C instead of in the mid 70s/mid 20s.
When we do the family photo challenge there are usually five or six people taking part - my four sisters and I, plus a niece or two. This time, so far only three of us have been posting our photos, and I was wondering why my other two sisters weren't posting. One of them doesn't always post every day, just does catch up posts every so often, but the other one normally posts every day, and usually posts several photos on the topic so it was very unusual not to see her photos. This morning I discovered she is in hospital recovering from emergency surgery for a twisted bowel. The surgery apparently went well and she is doing okay, but from what I read on the internet this could be a very serious thing to have happen.
When we do the family photo challenge there are usually five or six people taking part - my four sisters and I, plus a niece or two. This time, so far only three of us have been posting our photos, and I was wondering why my other two sisters weren't posting. One of them doesn't always post every day, just does catch up posts every so often, but the other one normally posts every day, and usually posts several photos on the topic so it was very unusual not to see her photos. This morning I discovered she is in hospital recovering from emergency surgery for a twisted bowel. The surgery apparently went well and she is doing okay, but from what I read on the internet this could be a very serious thing to have happen.
365 Questions 2025
Jul. 2nd, 2025 04:24 pmmaju1. What is the nicest thing someone has ever done for you? Once when my car had stalled after I drove through an unexpectedly deep puddle (on a main road) right after a torrential downpour, a passing stranger stopped, pulled out a tow rope, and towed my car a block or two up the road and off onto a side road where I could use a phone box to call for help. (This around 2000, before mobile phones were widely used, and while phone boxes were still a thing.)
2. What do you see when you look into the future? Not what I thought I was able to see a couple of years ago, for sure. Right now it's really hard for me to visualise the future.
2. What do you see when you look into the future? Not what I thought I was able to see a couple of years ago, for sure. Right now it's really hard for me to visualise the future.
(no subject)
Jul. 1st, 2025 01:17 pmmajuAnd just like that, the year is half over.
It was another busy morning, and it started very early because I woke up about 15 minutes before my alarm and couldn't get back to sleep. This was the second short night in a row for me; the previous night I couldn't get to sleep and ended up getting up and reading for an hour or two.
This morning I went for another photo walk but was unsuccessful in my search for something artificial. I was sure I'd seen fake flowers in a yard somewhere around here but I failed to find them this morning. I did see some path lights shaped like sunflowers, but that wasn't what I was looking for.
The rest of the morning included starting some food cooking in the slow cooker, vacuuming half the house, loading up the car with stuff for Goodwill and delivering it with a stop for petrol on the way, and getting a load of washing out on the line. Hanging out the washing might have been a bit optimistic because it's getting cloudy now and there is a severe thunderstorm warning for this afternoon. I'm thinking I'll just bring the washing in and hang it on clothes airers so I don't have to be anxious about it.
It was another busy morning, and it started very early because I woke up about 15 minutes before my alarm and couldn't get back to sleep. This was the second short night in a row for me; the previous night I couldn't get to sleep and ended up getting up and reading for an hour or two.
This morning I went for another photo walk but was unsuccessful in my search for something artificial. I was sure I'd seen fake flowers in a yard somewhere around here but I failed to find them this morning. I did see some path lights shaped like sunflowers, but that wasn't what I was looking for.
The rest of the morning included starting some food cooking in the slow cooker, vacuuming half the house, loading up the car with stuff for Goodwill and delivering it with a stop for petrol on the way, and getting a load of washing out on the line. Hanging out the washing might have been a bit optimistic because it's getting cloudy now and there is a severe thunderstorm warning for this afternoon. I'm thinking I'll just bring the washing in and hang it on clothes airers so I don't have to be anxious about it.
Reading Bingo - June 2025
Jul. 1st, 2025 03:33 pmganimede
Books read for squares:
A book set in space: Embers of War - Gareth L Powell
A book set on another planet: Rogue Protocol - Martha Wells
A book set somewhere you've lived: The Outsmarting of Criminals - Steven Rigolosi
Other books read:
The Game Is Murder - Hazell Ward
Currently reading:
Arcana Academy - Elise Kova
Thoughts:
Just half a dozen squares left now! I doubt I'll get it finished this month, especially as my current book is a bit of a slog. I do have books lined up for the remaining squares, apart from a beach read and a book set somewhere I want to visit. I think there should be quite a few options for the beach read, but it might be a little harder to find something set in a place I want to visit. I'll have to have a good think to come up with places I want to visit first!
(no subject)
Jun. 30th, 2025 12:55 pmmajuI've had a fairly busy morning but now it's time to relax. I started the morning with a walk which included taking a few photos for my family's next photo challenge, starting tomorrow. The first prompt is "imbibe" so I walked over to a pub/brewery near Safeway to take a photo of their signage, and discovered that there are two other shops just around the corner from the brewery where you can also drink alcohol, so I took photos of their signs as well. Tomorrow's prompt is "independence" and I intended to take a photo of my car for that but I forgot. I'll do it tomorrow. I did, however, get a photo of a cat (the only cat in this whole area who seems to be an outside cat).
I intended to go to Goodwill and Friends of the Library to drop off donations and then do some grocery shopping, but I discovered neither Goodwill or Friends of the Library opens before 10 am, so I only did grocery shopping (at MOMs, which opens at 9) and took the car through the car wash. I plan to drop off the donations tomorrow, possibly. When I got back I chopped some vegetables ready for cooking tomorrow. (Today's dinner came from the freezer.)
I intended to go to Goodwill and Friends of the Library to drop off donations and then do some grocery shopping, but I discovered neither Goodwill or Friends of the Library opens before 10 am, so I only did grocery shopping (at MOMs, which opens at 9) and took the car through the car wash. I plan to drop off the donations tomorrow, possibly. When I got back I chopped some vegetables ready for cooking tomorrow. (Today's dinner came from the freezer.)
365 Questions 2025
Jun. 30th, 2025 12:41 pmmaju27. What is your favorite song and why? I have too many favourite songs to be able to choose just one as my all-time favourite. The songs I like tend to have a good beat and a catchy tune, but they can be 50s/60s rock and roll, country-western, boogie-woogie, ragtime, or even classical. I like listening to music that makes me feel good.
28. With the resources you have right now, what can you do to bring yourself closer to your goal? Nothing, because my goal is to move to Connecticut to be closer to my daughter and family, but I'm dependent on other people getting things done before I can move.
29. What are your top three priorities? My main priority right now is keeping myself healthy, and to do that I try to eat well, get enough exercise, and get enough sleep. Getting enough sleep is the hard part, because my body and brain don't always cooperate.
30. Why do we idolize sports players? I don't really understand this phenomenon, but in my case I admire people who are able to recognise that they have a talent (for anything, not just sports) and work hard to be the best they can be at whatever it is.
28. With the resources you have right now, what can you do to bring yourself closer to your goal? Nothing, because my goal is to move to Connecticut to be closer to my daughter and family, but I'm dependent on other people getting things done before I can move.
29. What are your top three priorities? My main priority right now is keeping myself healthy, and to do that I try to eat well, get enough exercise, and get enough sleep. Getting enough sleep is the hard part, because my body and brain don't always cooperate.
30. Why do we idolize sports players? I don't really understand this phenomenon, but in my case I admire people who are able to recognise that they have a talent (for anything, not just sports) and work hard to be the best they can be at whatever it is.
Cast to Come Off Today
Jun. 30th, 2025 09:22 amiosonochesonoHopefully. They haven't looked at it since I went into A&E. I feel like a lot of this is ageism and fatphobia, so I'm trying to see if I can budget Mounjaro (I was reading studies about enchondroma and ACT and it's amazing how much they dismiss functionality if they think you're inactive. Literally, 'Ah she's overweight and middle-aged, no big deal.')
You hear it, you know it's true, but it's something else to actually read it in research. Like functionality doesn't affect long-term independence or mobility? Fuck's sake.
The thing is, I am physically active. I just eat too much. So I'm thinking if I work on body-weight training, mobility and Calisthenics - the stuff I can do for free - and give Mounjaro a shot, maybe I can address the weight part, and eventually I'll add the Apple Watch (which has a fall alarm anyway and given my luck I was already planning on one.) So if I get the suspicion someone is doing that to me I can advocate for myself.
But it is true I mostly do cardio, I don't do enough strength or mobility training specifically, so I'm going to genuinely work on that when the cast is off (laying off that wrist specifically during rehab).
I've mostly given up on applying for jobs and decided I will focus on trying to get into the HE and BSN programme at QUB, but I have made an exception for one organisation. It's literally right around the corner from where I live. 3 minutes by bike.
If I worked there, I'd actually possibly not need anything else. I could walk Jake up to 8.30 and still get to work on time. I wouldn't need a regular dog walker because I could come home during lunch, wouldn't need a bus pass. I'd still be home before 5.30.
That's an automatic savings of £310/month, and I could make lunch at home and there are no restaurants so I'd probably save even more on takeaways. I wouldn't need a car, so that would actually be my mostly-permanent incoming/outgoing and most of my takeaway budget could be shifted to the taxi budget for dog sports (still cheaper than owning a car full-time if I'm only using it for dog sports and beach trips.)
Basically, if I can't write a novel or win the lottery, living three minutes from work is a close second. And the salary maxes out above the local average. So I'm not trying to apply for jobs unless they come up at that place.
You hear it, you know it's true, but it's something else to actually read it in research. Like functionality doesn't affect long-term independence or mobility? Fuck's sake.
The thing is, I am physically active. I just eat too much. So I'm thinking if I work on body-weight training, mobility and Calisthenics - the stuff I can do for free - and give Mounjaro a shot, maybe I can address the weight part, and eventually I'll add the Apple Watch (which has a fall alarm anyway and given my luck I was already planning on one.) So if I get the suspicion someone is doing that to me I can advocate for myself.
But it is true I mostly do cardio, I don't do enough strength or mobility training specifically, so I'm going to genuinely work on that when the cast is off (laying off that wrist specifically during rehab).
I've mostly given up on applying for jobs and decided I will focus on trying to get into the HE and BSN programme at QUB, but I have made an exception for one organisation. It's literally right around the corner from where I live. 3 minutes by bike.
If I worked there, I'd actually possibly not need anything else. I could walk Jake up to 8.30 and still get to work on time. I wouldn't need a regular dog walker because I could come home during lunch, wouldn't need a bus pass. I'd still be home before 5.30.
That's an automatic savings of £310/month, and I could make lunch at home and there are no restaurants so I'd probably save even more on takeaways. I wouldn't need a car, so that would actually be my mostly-permanent incoming/outgoing and most of my takeaway budget could be shifted to the taxi budget for dog sports (still cheaper than owning a car full-time if I'm only using it for dog sports and beach trips.)
Basically, if I can't write a novel or win the lottery, living three minutes from work is a close second. And the salary maxes out above the local average. So I'm not trying to apply for jobs unless they come up at that place.
(no subject)
Jun. 29th, 2025 04:24 pmmajuI felt tired and headachey when I got up this morning, but after I'd been for a long walk I felt better, even though I was dripping with sweat because the humidity /was so high. (It was probably over 90% at that time of day - 7am-ish.)
I didn't feel like doing anything in particular so I decided today would be a movie-watching day. I watched one movie, "I Don't Know How She Does It" (Prime), based on a book I'd read a few years ago, but I didn't find it particularly compelling (the book was better, as I remember it) and when it ended I didn't feel like watching another one even though Prime was showing me a couple of others which look interesting. I did spend the movie-watching time working on a sample flower granny square, so it wasn't completely wasted time.
Later in the afternoon I finished watching "Motherland" (Britbox). Last week sometime I started another Britbox show, "Until I Kill You", based on a true story, but I've only watched a couple of episodes so far. Also last week I started watching "Waterloo Road" on Prime and after one episode I'm enjoying it.
The heat has kicked in again. I did enjoy the day and a half of cooler weather.
I didn't feel like doing anything in particular so I decided today would be a movie-watching day. I watched one movie, "I Don't Know How She Does It" (Prime), based on a book I'd read a few years ago, but I didn't find it particularly compelling (the book was better, as I remember it) and when it ended I didn't feel like watching another one even though Prime was showing me a couple of others which look interesting. I did spend the movie-watching time working on a sample flower granny square, so it wasn't completely wasted time.
Later in the afternoon I finished watching "Motherland" (Britbox). Last week sometime I started another Britbox show, "Until I Kill You", based on a true story, but I've only watched a couple of episodes so far. Also last week I started watching "Waterloo Road" on Prime and after one episode I'm enjoying it.
The heat has kicked in again. I did enjoy the day and a half of cooler weather.
(no subject)
Jun. 28th, 2025 03:50 pmmajuFinally, LJ seems to be back to normal.
It was still pleasantly cool(ish) this morning although the humidity was very high; it felt like it was close to 100%. We'd had a small amount of rain overnight, but not enough to create large puddles on the parkrun course so I went to parkrun. There was a woman there wearing a Monash University running shirt; Monash University is in Melbourne, Australia, so I asked her if she was Australian and she was. We didn't really get to talk because parkrun was about to start, and she finished well ahead of me so I didn't see her afterwards either. I'm hoping she shows up again sometime because I'd like to chat more. (To hear the accent :)
It was still pleasantly cool(ish) this morning although the humidity was very high; it felt like it was close to 100%. We'd had a small amount of rain overnight, but not enough to create large puddles on the parkrun course so I went to parkrun. There was a woman there wearing a Monash University running shirt; Monash University is in Melbourne, Australia, so I asked her if she was Australian and she was. We didn't really get to talk because parkrun was about to start, and she finished well ahead of me so I didn't see her afterwards either. I'm hoping she shows up again sometime because I'd like to chat more. (To hear the accent :)