Update on the Twins

Sage is so serious and Raina always has a smile but what a fun pair.  It will be increasingly fun to see them as twins with such individual personalities.

Indian Fry Bread

I must be feeling more energetic.  I actually bought the ingredients and made Indian Fry Bread for the children after school.  They liked them but I didn't think the texture was as good as I remember.

I remember well finding the recipe in the Sunset magazine and trying them out because Bobby, the Navajo boy living with us, kept asking for them.  He showed us how to pat them out and said they tasted right.  I don't think we ever got him the mutton he wanted though.

When John was in high school he would bring his surfing friends home and we would make Indian Fry Bread and whipped honey butter.  I will have to find out from Meagan again how she made her honey butter at Christmas.  Hers was much higher whipped.

I thought the Fry Bread was much heavier than it should have been.  I found this note in a recipe--I kneaded it too much apparently!!

Sift together the flour, salt, powdered milk, and baking powder into a large bowl. Pour the water over the flour mixture all at once and stir the dough with a fork until it starts to form one big clump.


Flour your hands. Using your hands, begin to mix the dough, trying to get all the flour into the mixture to form a ball. NOTE: You want to mix this well, but you do NOT want to knead it. Kneading it will make for a heavy Fry Bread when cooked. The inside of the dough ball should still be sticky after it is formed, while the outside will be well floured. 

Victoria

The last time I went to Victoria, I remember well. I had just finished a year of teaching in Billings, Mt, broken up for the final time with my boyfriend of over 7 years and traveled on a bus to Washington to meet my college roommate Colleen who had taught her first year in Port Angeles. 

The bus experience I will never forget.  I was the only one on the bus with all these soldiers and I was shy.  Each time I passed one with an empty seat he would encourage me to sit down.  I finally sat near the back next to a sweet, shy, looking guy.  It was so cold on the bus I shared my blanket or coat or something with him.  Innocent me, he tried to get fresh...but he was so nice it only took a word from me to put him in place.

Colleen and I took the ferry which was so exciting to me and I loved Victoria--this was in 1956.  Port Angeles was very rainy and I thought then that I could never live in Washington.

Colleen and I then started on a month long trip down the west coast to find a place to teach.  I thought Oregon was beautiful but we kept moving south.  The San Francisco area was very interesting.  We both wanted to tour a Navy ship and naively approached a sailor at the bus stop and asked him if he had any friends who would take us on a tour.  He called a buddy from a pay phone and let us talk to him.  He said he would be there in a minute and would love to take us on the ship.  I asked how we would know which one he was and he said he would be wearing a white hat!!

Well, I guess he liked how we looked because he actually brought a friend and we had a wonderful tour of a huge ship.  They even invited us to a tour of San Francisco that night.  Honestly, I know you could not do that in this day but they treated us royally and we had the grand tour, something to eat and nothing but gentlemanly attention.

San Francisco and San Jose were not hiring any new teachers so we moved on.  We toured the Hearst Castle and various other side trips and our next place to interview was Santa Barbara.  We loved that place but they were not hiring either.  We spent a lot of time in Los Angeles at Muscle Beach, the Lawrence Welk Show, etc. and eventually drove in to San Diego.

It was gorgeous.  We immediately knew "This was the Place"--coincidentally it was the Last Place, too.  We had had a roommate from San Diego named Gerry.  She was married and we called her and asked her why she never told us what a great city this was.  We stayed at the Ocean Beach motel and started touring the town.  At that time Mission Valley was mostly farm and dairy and Mission Bay was mud flats.  We loved to go to Ocean and Mission Beach and thought the perfect place to live would be La Jolla but it was very expensive.

Oh, yes, we applied right away at the Education Center.  They told us the man who did the hiring was out of town but he loved BYU students and he needed teachers and he knew he would hire us.  Just go have fun and we would received contracts in the mail.  (We did!)

The funniest thing was driving around San Diego.  We kept running in to dead ends but finally decided that North Park/Hillcrest would be in our price range and a good central place to live if we got the teaching jobs.   The big department stores were all downtown so we would shop and then go to the movies down there.  It was so funny.  You would be surrounded by oceans of sailors in the movie house.  San Diego was a good place for single girls at that time.

We went home after our month long trip and I took the train from Utah back to Glendive and then in August took the train again to San Diego for my newest adventure.  Coincidentally my boyfriend was on the train with the National Guard so we said Goodbye again but I spent most of my trip in Montana with my childhood friend George--they were all on their way to NG camp.

John, one of returned missionaries doing time in San Diego--Fall 1956.

In San Diego we rented a darling place not too far from the zoo with a big orange tree on the patio.  We attended 4th Ward where there were 17 new school teachers, even more returned missionaries who were now doing their Navy time plus lots of locals.  It was a great ward. 

We soon moved from our Zoo area place to a bigger place with 4 other teachers. We were just a block from the ward.  Our place became a second home for all the sailors.  We had lots of dances, mutual activities and the older people loved to follow our social life.  It was a great time for young people in San Diego.

Chuck, one of our Navy Officers in the ward, brought his friend Bill to do a demonstration  with him in my school class.  That started a whole other new adventure in my life.  So what was I talking about?  Oh yes, Victoria, looking forward to going there again with Maria and Linda on March 25th.

Moving Forward

It was nice to have my daughter take me to my colonoscopy--if I had had it done at home, I would have had to have someone drive me to Chico and wait!!!!  Which is why I am pursuing my medical list down here.  Thanks, Maria, for taking the day for me.  And the good news, my colon is in perfect shape.  That really surprised me, I had envisioned the worst scenario.  I thought the medical staff was great.  On the table they kept asking all kinds of questions about Lake Almanor--before they put me out that is.  That whole part of it was a very pleasant experience.  They were surprised I wasn't on any medication for anything!

So now my quest for getting myself in good physical shape is moving on.  I started in November with a total physical which was perfect except for the right artery.   In December I had a chipped tooth fixed and my teeth cleaned.  In January I had a new vision test resulting in new driving and reading glasses.  In January I also checked out having my heavy eyelids fixed and my varicose veins done again.  I passed on both of those.  I also had the doppler test and found my right artery is 70-80% narrowed.

This week I checked out the pain in my right foot plaguing me for some time and the colonoscopy.  The last thing to be done is the visit to the thoracic surgeon to see if surgery is needed on my artery or just a 'wait and see'.  I suppose I should see if my right wrist pain is something that can be cured--it has only been a year since I fell and of course, the nagging neck pain from the weird accident at Christmas.  I did buy a neck brace and neck comforter to see if treating it myself works.

And of course, there is the continual search for which foods are giving me these bouts of indigestion.  Gluten? Dairy? Veggies? Fat? Sugar? Each time I think I have it--something gives me doubt.  Now I am on the 'sole' for more energy.  That is a spoonful of water each day from the crystal salt.  No biggy.  I will pursue a green smoothie each day and go from there.  Right now I am to stay off my feet but once I can get going, I will pursue my walking fulltime again.

All I want is more (lots more) energy, a happy tummy and sleeping well.  Not much to ask at 77 I don't think.

Once I get feeling 100% again I will start living a more exciting life I think and write about something other than me.  I want to be ready for our little trip to Victoria.  I was so tired on our Scandinavia trip and feet hurt that I often skipped too much walking.  I don't want that again.

Valentine's Day

I had such a nice Valentine Day with Maria and Melissa.  Maria always has such interesting stories to tell and Melissa is so caring.  She watches over my purse and jacket and me. 

We went to the Whaley House--the haunted house.  We always took our Cub Scouts there when we visited Old Town and our children, of course.  The thing I noticed is how small the old furniture was and how small their shoes were.  We have come a BIG way with all the food we eat.

And you have to buy some candy at Old Town, which I did.  The street tacos were very good and the churros are the best.  The thing I miss most in Lake Almanor is all the good Mexican food down here.

After Old Town Maria took us to Hillcrest for some yummy $3 cupcakes but they really were better than homemade from a  cake package.  I had the Red Velvet and it was so delicious.  Thank you beautiful Maria and beautiful Melissa for such a nice day.

One of my happiest memories of Valentines's Day were the beautiful Valentine boxes our Primary School teachers made.  They were so beautiful with paper lace and hearts and ruffles and in the top of a box a slit so we could put our valentines in it.  And then we always had a party with goodies and drink on our desk and of course, the passing out of the valentines and you always analyzed what your current crush had sent you.  It was so simple and fun, kind of like street tacos with people you love.

Getting Through the Night

So many times we just have to get through it--no enjoying the moment, just get through it.  That is how I would describe the night before a colonoscopy.  I think I know the perfect strategy for surviving though, if anyone ever needs to know.  But what is this being cold business?  I have heat on, sweatshirt over my flannels, quilt wrapped around me.  Is it the dehydration of your body that makes you cold??? Hmmm.

On with my medical saga.  I don't write these things because they are interesting.  I write them so I will remember.  Today I talked to a Medicare person to do a little questioning and complaining.  Surprise, surprise, he was available, caring, and helpful.  Who knew?  Anyway he couldn't give his opinion about things I asked but gave me a number of someone who could.  And lo and behold a quick call back to me.  Honestly--our Tax Dollars at work.

Seems for where I live I have chosen correctly with Medicare Primary and a Supplement rather than a PPO or HMO.  She also said I should have gotten the under $20 a month Medicare D that was offered in December.  Never heard.  But she said the $24 deal I have is a close second.  She said on some iffy kind of procedures it can be difficult to get good answers up front from Medicare but to try and find doctors that are Medicare friendly and experienced.  It helps.

I had a nice visit with my podiatrist today who also is in the same place as my skin surgeon Dr. Barbara.  She looked at my nose and said it will heal just as well as it would have if it hadn't separated (really?) but it will just take a little longer.  Do not use Mederma on it yet (used it too soon again and it kept getting red and ugly).  Anyway it is a lot better today.

I have, according to the Dr. Walter, a beautiful foot (looking at my ex-rays) no arthritis or other problems.  But my second metatarsal is currently lower than the others and taking the brunt of my steps so it is inflamed.  He put a pad on the bottom to wear for four days, not get wet, and stay off of it and take ibprofen and see how it is Tuesday.  He looked at the Dr Scholl foot pads I bought yesterday and said they were good and would help a lot (they have).  CVS Pharmacy has a Dr. Scholl contraption that analyzes your foot problem by having you stand on it.  Very interesting.  He asked how much I paid for it and said that was not bad at all.  If  I had gotten it at the Good Foot store they would have charged about 4 times more and it still would not be custom made.  Hmm.  I wonder if that is what is coming next.  Something custom made for me.  Anyway it already feels better as he leveled the playing field with the other metatarsals.  He also said our skin gets much thinner as we get older so we feel the pain more.  Marjorie can't stand to go barefoot--maybe I need to think that way.

Sherry

Sherry's daughter Caitland.

    

      Sherry's son Zach and Beleca.  They are buying a condo and having a baby, working and finishing college, all at the same time.

Sherry's sister Debbie, husband Tom and daughter.  Debbie has been such a support and friend to Sherry and her family in this

past few years of sickness

.

Sherry and Wes Smith

I

Sherry's daughter Carole and Debbie's Antowne

I didn't have a picture of Sherry's son Steven but here is one of her dogs.

I have been thinking of Sherry, my sister's daughter today.  She passed away Tuesday night--much too young.  I was remembering when she lived with us, her eagerness to help, her always wanting to bake us something, her love of taking Zach to the Padres games.  She had such a beautiful smile and lovely eyes and spoke with such a soft voice.

I can remember well when Zach would take off running at the mall, when none of us were expecting it.  What did he hope to see?  Where did he want to go?  Just curious I guess and Sherry in pursuit.  She and John spoke the same language and were good friends but she also spent a lot of time alone, writing, thinking.   She responded well to Richard and whatever he thought she should learn.  She worked well in the business.  I remember one of our 80's Christmas cards and we did a spoof of what we were all doing.  She was touted as the hot real estate lady who was selling millions.

For Richard's and my Silver Wedding Anniversary she carved the watermelon for the salad.  I think without a doubt we all enjoyed having Sherry with us.  When she had crafted the trade of being able to process loans she wanted to leave and be with her friends in Austin and that is where she has been since.

But she soon left the boring loan business and pursued her love of cooking.  I hope she found some answers to the questions she was always pursuing.  She certainly had some beautiful children.  And she was always creative and had such great love for people and animals and plants and books.  Sherry, a very loving daughter of God.  May she find peace in heaven.

The Medical Saga Goes On

It's been awhile since I have written.  On with my problems with Medicare.  I kept my appointment with the vein doctor and she said my legs need to be done but Medicare is being run by Palmetto and they are slow in paying and it is uncertain what they will pay.  She cannot get approval up front.  I think it would be better if I had Medicare Advantage but it had appeared that where I am living that would not be as good.  I may need to revisit that decision.  Anyway she wanted $2500 up front and then I would get reimbursed from Medicare and Healthnet.  That is not going to happen.

Next Dr appointments is with a podiatrist on Wednesday to see if I can resolve this pain in the ball of my left foot.  I can't wear heels or my high boots at all anymore without terrible pain in my foot.

Next Friday I have my Colonscopy Screening.  I know I should have had one years ago and it was scheduled, at least three times.  But every time it would get near I would get called out to work and so I cancelled my appointment.  This time it will happen.

On March 2 I have an appointment with the Cardio Surgeon.  I am hoping he reviews the tests and my health and makes it just a "wait and see" but I am thinking with the poor economy Drs need all the work they can get and he may opt to do the surgery anyway.  Is that a really 'badditude'?  I will check and see what he says about my legs as well.

I had thought I would have all my medical 'list' completed long before the snow was melted up north but at the rate I am going I can see that is not true.  I just hope I am finished by the time the snow melts!

The Senior Decisions of Life

Thursday I had a consultation with an eye surgeon about my drooopy, heavy eyelids.  After he gave me all my options--three, in fact, and the information that some cost money and some were not as desirable as they used to be because Obama meddled with Medicare and changed some things, I decided just to live with the heavy, droopy eyelids. 

After all, as Maria said, why put a new chair in with all the other old furniture.  One way to look at.  She also reminded me at lunch on Friday that Meryl Streep had had the same reaction in the movie, "It's Complicated".  I had forgotten that.  The decisions we seniors have to make--- and maybe some are just as well to run away from, as Meryl Streep...and I did.

Express Your Love

"They've got to be taught to love and hate, by the time they are six or seven or eight, they've got to be carefully taught..."  This is a song in "South Pacific" and I thought about it today.  I had walked into the kitchen and Jacob asked me how long it would take my nose to get better.  I commented that I didn't know but I hoped there wasn't too big of a scar and added "not that anyone cares."  Camber said, "We care" and immediately Kelsi spoke up and said, "Grandma, can I whisper something in your ear?"  And she came over and whispered, "You're the best Grandma ever."  And I have heard her tell her Grampa Greg how much she loves him.  She is very open with her accolades.  In fact, all of the grandchildren are very kind and loving and tell me they love me.  I am so glad their parents have taught them to love and express that love.

We had love and peace in our home  when I was a child but we never expressed it and I did not like to be hugged at all.  I was talking later today to my friend Connie and she said it was the same in her home.  People just did not talk about their feelings or show that kind of emotion much in their families.   Maybe some cultures did, ours did not.  I am so glad that has changed.  Of course, there was my Dad dancing at lunch with my Mom and always giving her a big kiss.  But I don't remember throwing my arms around my parents and telling them how much I loved them.

 Maybe that is why it impressed me so much, because it was unusual to be so demonstrative.

Sugartime

For some reason I have been on a sugar kick.  I have been eating candy--my favorite candy, nonstop but why?  I have said it before and I will say it again.  It is a good thing that sugar is my vice and not wine. 

My thing is not chocolate, it is more like jelly beans.  If I can go off of sugar for 30 days I can be very happy without it unless something triggers me back on.  Sugarholic is what it is...Woe is me.  But what is missing that I must fill my life with sugar?  Hmm, several things come to mind.

When I am thinking about things, being creative, or making something, I always like to have a some candy to
cheer me on...why is that???  When I was working SBA in Texas and we were working such long tedious hours, I always had to have a Peanuts M&M break around 3 in the afternoon.  Especially with Diet Dr. Pepper.

Justice--A Harvard Course

My brain is being challenged as I sit in a class at Harvard everyday at my computer.  The class is "Justice" by Michael Sandel and there are 12 lectures, each with two parts.  I am on Lecture 7.

The books the students have had to read I know nothing about.  Many of the words are totally unfamiliar to me.  But I love the way the teacher teaches.  He talks about what certain philosophers have written and then challenges the students to give their opinions.  I am totally impressed with their ability to express themselves.  I could not have done that at 18.  I could not have thought so deeply as they do.  Of course, they are at Harvard!!

He is a master at getting them to participate and never lets the discussion get out of hand.  I love the way the teacher interjects real life stories for purposes of illustration and analyzing.  He obviously has collected this material over the years and knows just when to introduce it.  For the most part he speaks off the cuff, occasionally referring to his notes.  He illustrates certain points (after they have discussed them) on an overhead projector.  He is a master teacher and never hesitates with an uh, or extra words but speaks deliberately and in a manner easy to understand and follow.  He always repeats what the students have said in a clear, concise way, asks them their name and repeats it, and makes every contribution appear to be meaningful.  He never dictates what is truth but has them challenge and debate the information and leads them to certain conclusions.  They hang on his every word and take copious notes on paper and computer.  The room is a huge auditorium, three stories high, completely filled!  You could hear a pin drop.  It is better than sitcoms!!!

I am looking forward to watching other classes from other universities.  The site is academicearth.org--a feature of Public Television funded by private sources.  As they roll the credits to those private contributers I always wish that was something I was able to do--donate huge amounts of money for something important.

Stress Sets In Big Time

This morning I started out for a Doctor's appointment on Carmel Mountain Road.  Since I cross Carmel Mountain Road everytime I go to Walmart or Costco, I assumed I could go by Walmart and buy Bandido's dog food before going to the Doctor's office.  However, when I plugged in the address to my GPS (after finishing at Walmart) it took me 15 miles away!!  It appears Carmel Mountain Road goes from beyond I-15 to over by I-5.  Since I was low on gas, this was stressing me out.  Then I realized I had forgotten my cell phone and I began to feel more stress.  As I drove I was also thinking about the various problems facing so many family members and I stressed even more!

How is it that I drove for over sixty years without a cell phone and got along just fine and now I panic without one.  After finally arriving at the Dr's office I began filling out the paper work and I read--'No Medicare Insurance will be accepted.'  What??  Now I am really stressing out.  The receptionist tries to convince me to see the Dr anyway but I say, 'No Way, I cannot afford to not use my insurance.'

On the way out I ask someone where is the closest gas station--I was just about on 0 when I pulled in.  She tells me how to go and when I finally get there I can see a station but the freeway is in the way and I panic as to which road to take.  Thank heaven behind the bridge is another station I can pull into.  However, I cannot decipher how to pay for the gas!!  More stress.

As I leave the station I am in totally unfamiliar territory, thank heaven for my GPS and I get on my way, now so totally stressed out I just head for James' home.

Why do I get so stressed?  True, I don't know San Diego anymore but I think it is my age.  I just can't handle anything anymore.

When I get home I tell Camber I need to de-stress so I was taking Kelsi and Bandido for a walk.  We went to the park, dallied at the swings and then sat in the sand and made castles with balconies and windows and people and then scattered snow over them all.  It was very calming...  I can't handle this old age.  I want to be a child again.