Lindaru

Occasionally we have a winter like this one.

The first stimulus check we got by direct deposit.

The recent one came as a debit card which I was able to set up an account with the EIP and get transferred to my bank.

We also do not have to pay any taxes nor do we collect refunds.  They had our direct deposit number from when we could get refunds before hubby retired.

Not sure why the card this time.
 

Thank you, everyone.  I kept back two of his shirts he bought specifically for the cruise and am wearing those as sleep shirts.  I also still have his unopened Princess slippers.  Bags of things we collected in the Alaskan ports and that were given out such as the Daily Patter.  I do cherish those.

I would absolutely do a cruise solo if I could get to the port.  I do not drive and live in Idaho, and I also do not fly (ear issues), but thanks for the idea.
 

Just thought I would pop in here to let you know that our first cruise was also our last.  My husband passed suddenly from a heart attack Saturday, January 9th, here at home.

2021 sucks worse than 2020 for me.

😪

I have my fingers crossed that since the Governor might be approving everyone 65 and older (instead of 75 and older), and since they said that nearly half of our population is 65 and over, that Rite Aid might be giving out the vaccines.  They sent me an E-Mail when they were doing testing, so if so, I should be getting an E-Mail from them if they do the vaccines.

Fingers crossed!

🤞
 

We are still on the front line health care workers, first responders, and residents and staff of nursing homes here.  They have a dash board up for when it is "available for everyone else" which looks to be sometime in April, but from what I have heard, if you do not have an assigned health care provider (which I do not . . . I do not go to the doctor unless I have an urgent need and then just take whoever is available) it may be even longer, possibly as late as September.

I thought Rite Aid might be giving them out (our only pharmacy here) but seems they are not on the list.  People living here can get them when they are reminded by their health care provider, so I have no idea how to know when or where to make an appointment when it is my turn.

Guess I just do not get one?
 

11 hours ago, Lucky TGO said:

Hi to all my Cruise Critic friends,

Let me start by saying it’s cold in Boston. Now about singing while washing your hands.

The song I like to sing is Yo Ho Ho and a bottle of RUM. 

Singing or drinking it?
 

8 hours ago, Thrak said:

Happy Birthday!

The one day in all of this so far that I did not feel weird singing the happy birthday song while washing my hands.

🤣

1 hour ago, Plant said:

Happy Birthday!  I hope your day was great!

 

It was indeed!  Talked on the telephone with my Aunt who lives in another state.  Got some gift cards as presents and have already spent half of one on a music maker program which I have already created a couple of songs with.

😊

I am grateful that I survived this last year and now have awoken this morning to be one year older today.  When I sign in to Twitter, I get those adorable balloons!

If you have cake and ice cream wherever you are, be sure to have some today.  I would send you some, but they do not have an up-load for food items on this forum.

Stay safe everyone and lets get through this next year and come out the other side to the normal we once knew.

🎂
 

Double posted, but anyway . . . have a good one and a safe one from McCall!
 

5 hours ago, PurpleHays said:

Anyone else track Santa on NORAD? It's one of my favortite things to do on Christmas Eve.

Me, too!  I have him up on another tab right now.

Sign of 2020.  Santa is wearing a face mask despite the fact that up there he is already social distancing.

Just me and hubby for Christmas in our home.  Lots of telephone contact with loved ones though.

Merry Happy Season Greetings Christmas Holiday!

🎅🤶🌲🎄
 

For a week now we have been in an inversion, basically meaning that our air is "stuck".  This puts us in a not so nice category of air quality, and we are asked to refrain from running gasoline powered vehicles and/or equipment as well as no indoor or outdoor burning.

I am okay with the furnace for heat since the wood stove makes a mess to clean up anyway.

No snow, no rain, no wind here.  It is like we are in a vacuum.  Every day they say in the next day or two it will clear, but it never does.

This must be a meteorological time warp.

🙄😶
 

Then, of course . . . it would not be Christmas without one of these which we purchased a few years back but is now behind some other stuff on a shelf.  Really need to keep it safe because it is "fra-gee-lay".

😉

Our Christmas tree for the last several years.  Yes, getting old for us means cutting back on the work.

3 hours ago, Loki S said:

Love reading about the ski resorts and snow, whilst parts of Australia are in or about to head into another heatwave. Some parts will be approaching the high 40 degrees (Celsius). I’ll be in the air conditioning watching Netflix. Only seen snow ❄️ once in my life.

🥵

I will take the snow over the heat.

You can always put things on or cover yourself to get warm, but you can only take off so much when it gets too hot.

Stay cool!

6 minutes ago, memoak said:

In Portland Oregon today it is foggy but Timberline is already open for skiing ⛷ and Mt Hood Meadows opens on Monday. Subject to crowd limitations of course

I have been watching the news clips they have of the ski resorts there.  It makes me feel a bit of a kinship given that we have had snow building up here since a couple of weeks ago.

❄️

No household mixing on this day, but kept in touch with others over Messenger and in chat rooms.

Great dinner and now lots of left overs.  Spent more time doing dishes than I would have liked, but oh well . . . worth the pay off for the meal we had.

Also "virtual travelled" on You Tube remembering my time in Portland visiting neighborhoods I used to live in, work in and just visit (walking tours).  Did I break the rules by virtual travelling?

😆

Hope everyone else had a great day!

Our Idaho Governor came on yesterday and announced we have stepped back to modified Stage 2.  No gatherings of over ten people inside or outside, school districts can choose if they wish to do remote learning only which Boise school district has opted for, strong urgency for those places where mask mandates are not in force to please wear them, requests for remote gatherings if possible for Thanksgiving.  The gathering limit does not affect religious or educational activities.

I recently got a Windows 10 update that took quite a few hours to down-load and install.  This is a new version of the operating system that is tailored towards people having to work from home.  Not sure what this version is called (example there was the Creators Update), but I imagine it could be the 10-19 (for COVID-19) update?

🤔
 

Hello from snow covered McCall, Idaho.  Our COVID cases are also rising in Idaho to the point where a hospital to the south of us is fluctuating at capacity and has had to turn patients away.  It is scary to learn that the health department commissioner for our county now also has the virus.  Hope he is doing okay.

Since the last kid moved out in 2006, we have only attended two family Thanksgiving gatherings, one in 2015 and one last year.  Normally it is just us here at home doing our own thing without people over, so this will feel normal to us this year.  I feel for all of you who have had your holiday up-ended.  This will be a Thanksgiving to tell your descendants about.

I have not been to the store in 15 days but may have to go tomorrow.  I will make sure I can hold out for another 15 days after that.  In addition to the mask and distancing, I carry a sanitizing wipe with me through the whole store and wipe down my hands whenever I touch anything, so I believe I am doing the best I can in these circumstances.  So far, I have not had any indication that I have caught anything, not even seasonal flu which has started up here already.  The protocols we use for COVID work for the flu, too.

Stay well and hang in there, all.
 

Got our first stick to the ground snow fall starting Saturday evening and forecast to get bunches more most days this coming week.  High was only 27 today in McCall, Idaho.

"I am dreaming of a white Thanksgiving!"*

*Not really, but that is always the way it goes here for the entire 22 years I have lived here.

❄️😆

4 hours ago, LoriPhil said:

So sorry to hear of your new fire - do you expect snows anytime soon to help curb its growth?  Such a dry year!

If the forecast is correct, we should get rain on Friday and snow on Saturday.  I heard smoke jumper planes going over this morning but nothing since.  I imagine they are attacking it more from the ground.

The winds have shifted direction and seem to be coming out of the northwest which is in our favor, but that would not be good for the resort buildings and homeowners that live on the opposite side of the ski hill.  You can see the smoke is fairly thick when you look in that direction.

Hoping it just gets put out soon.
 

Hi, all . . . really thought our fire season in McCall, Idaho, was done for the year.

This afternoon the West State fire 20 miles south of us broke out on a ski hill at Tamarack Resort.  As of two and a half hours ago, it was reported to be at 50 acres, but still worrisome as it started at five acres and quickly grew to 50.  The wind direction in pleasant weather (which we have been having the last few days) comes from the south or southwest.  They said they will be starting work on it tomorrow and I am hoping they can get it contained.

🔥

Got you beat.  South of McCall it was 22.

The last few days we have 34 rounds of wood split and stacked, some in the house and that first night we were already putting it to use in the wood stove.

Air conditioner is moved out of the window and into the garage to assist with keeping the heat inside.

Shared lawn mower with our neighbor is now back in the garage at the neighbor's house as they are going back home to Oregon (they summer here) today.

Snow is supposed to start tonight, estimating two or more inches by tomorrow evening before it stops.

 

2 hours ago, memoak said:

49 sounds rather balmy. It was 43 here in Portland this morning. Our high for Sunday is predicted to be 49

I used to live in Portland, so watch KGW on You Tube.  Did you see Rod Hill with his predictions for your winter?
 

💧❄️

Yes, perhaps we could move the date out a little bit for this party.

I am being fitted for my custom life jacket this weekend.

Very long sleeves that tie behind my back.  They suggest I should only wear it in padded cabins.

🤪