RMLincoln

Good morning from the car service center. Prepping for our drive north Saturday to cousins Remembrance gathering in Hudson Valley area of NY. It’ll be great to see so many cousins plus my sister and niece! The storms last night were dramatic here but not as damaging for our area as for too many others. @smitty34877 So glad you made it to appt before rain or worse. Hoping Lou can manage some food, it’s also very important medicine! Blessings Terri for success at the lawyers. We are not making progress with our trust update. She hasn’t found the time to speak with us since April. We were very available for months but now getting busy. I hoped we’d be done this year but it’s doubtful now. I just have to be patient and believe I won’t be in a lurch (if DH dies while the old one is still in effect). Grateful for every day! Enchiladas were a staple in NM! Versatile, served in every possible form. Beef, chicken, Turkey, cheese only, corn (yellow, white or the extra special blue corn!) or flour (white or whole wheat) tortillas. Always covered in chile! In NM the most asked question is, Red or Green? I learned to ask, Which is hotter? They were always proud to tell you of their “good” chile! Good=hot! Then I’d order the other choice! Often people ordered “Christmas” which meant half red/half green chile sauce. Homemade chile sauce isn’t hard but it does take time and forethought. Red is made from dried red chiles: wash, break open, remove the seeds, simmer in water then blenderize. For green it’s similar but chop the roasted green chile, don’t blenderize. From there it varies by family. But the basics are to cook onions, garlic, oregano in lard, add flour to simmer a roux, add chile, simmer. Maybe add meat for flavor, especially a small amount of pork. Now you have chile sauce. The meat for the enchiladas should be simmered in chile sauce for an hour or more, either red or green chile, before removing the meat to shred it for layering into the tortillas; then layer with chopped onions and cheeses. Enchiladas in NM are served rolled or flat. Flat has a better ratio of layers:tortilla. Bueño! Blessings to all in need! Congrats to those celebrating ! Smooth travels to all away! Been researching some shore excursions for Quebec City and Boston. My hip hasn’t been good lately but maybe I’ll find the right combination of exercises, shoe lifts, NSAIDs and a walking stick so I can enjoy some of the ports. Will have to go back and find the back-story on Camilla. Great picture of her! We’ve been going through DH’s boxes (and boxes!) of old family slides. Kids grow up fast. Life flies by for those who are lucky enough to get old enough to look back. Today is everything! Enjoy it! Maureen

People are using Apple Watch now. I’m sure there is a fee for monitoring but it can detect if you pass out and don’t respond to inquiry. I think it’s the newest technology but I’m no expert, maybe others do that too now. MD does free daily Senior Wellness phone checks for those who live alone, but you probably know that. m—

Storms expected later today. Everyone stay safe! Blessings for all the appointments…. Lou and Terry, and baby Murphy’s eval. And a new miracle for Terri and the termite people. A good bath for Fancy. Good scan for Sam and peace along the journey! A peaceful day for Mr Boston… soon you’ll learn that in retirement every day is a work day! Where did we find time to go to a job? Love the photos Lenda. We were in Crete but a different port, west end, too far to get to Knossos, but DH was quite sick then with pneumonia and we couldn’t have gone anyway. We were grateful Medical got him on a path forward without having to put us off the ship. Moussaka can be made vegan which is required for Greek Orthodox Lenten season. But I’d miss the meat and the cheese! Could substitute a plant protein and use a “white sauce” made with an alternative milk and olive oil… maybe mash tofu and garlic into it to give it body and flavor. But like I said, I’d miss the neat and cheese! I love moussaka but haven’t tried to make it, and DH would go for eggplant, so I order it whenever I can. I’m starting to look at travel guides for Quebec City and Boston! But I have to get prepped for leaving Saturday for NY and family gathering. Second post-op eye checkup is Thursday, praying for Amazing! Grateful we’ve had such good indicators so far. Miracles abound! Blessings to all in need of healing, comfort or hope! Congrats to all celebrating! Smooth travels to all away! Maureen

@marshhawk Annie, I too was a huge fan of Tom Rush music. I gave my albums to my brother last October but I still have him on other media. And could your Blind Willies have anything to do with Blind Willie Johnson? He wrote Your Gonna Need Somebody on Your Bond. All long ago! Enjoy that chicken salad tomorrow. @Cruzin Terri Terry, it sure seems to be piling on for you. I am sorry you are dealing with so much. I hope you can get some help, get some sleep and take care of yourself too. Paul, sounds like a rare treat for you! Opera is just not my thing… I do love the music! And the sets, staging, the stories… everything but the singing…. I’m sorry I can’t enjoy it, the sopranos and probably the contratenors are just like fingernails on a blackboard to me. I’ll stick to plain symphonies. But I am happy for you! @dfish Stunning pictures! Thank you! @JazzyV Thank you for your kind words. I am a step-GM but those kids have been the greatest blessing in my life next to my DH! And they have said to me that they don’t care about titles, I’ve been their GM all their lives and they will be there for me forever. We’ll be staying with DGD and her sweet DH next week for a night. We took the 3 grandkids on their first cruise, to Alaska! She did amazing finding safe foods. I asked her beforehand if she was sure about the cruise because food is such a big focus. She said, Grandma, I really want to go even if I have to eat Rice Krispies all week! Well she ate mounds of French fries, Turkey burgers, and 5 kinds of poultry in the MDR. We took them on adventurous vacations, showed them just a taste of there being a big world out there! They’re a huge joy!

Awake much too early this morning but that’s not a bad thing. Used the time to start researching Quebec history and look for a guide to Quebec City. I was there with my parents when I was 13, a very long time ago. My French is also from almost that long ago, Junior High and High School, and just as fuzzy. I’m excited about the cruise next month but have to refocus for our car trip next week. It’s all good! Sad history recalled today with Hiroshima and all the atrocities of that dark era. Unfortunately we are not ever without war somewhere. Blessings to those in need of healing, comfort or hope. Prayers for Ukraine, and all the needs shared here. Hoping for improvements for all. Cheers to those celebrating birthdays, anniversaries and accomplishments. Smooth travels for all away and especially thinking of our cruisers. One of our granddaughters was allergic to most food groups: Red meats, fish, wheat, soy, legumes, dairy, eggs…. It was hard traveling with her but in our trailer we were able to stock and prepare safe meals for her. She loved my lasagna: not vegan, she could eat poultry so Italian-seasoned ground turkey worked well; gluten free noodles; “Rice-cheese” for the mozzarella; and for the ricotta I mashed tofu into a “white sauce” made with coconut milk, olive oil and cornstarch and with a lot of garlic- it was just the right texture; sauce was from canned tomatoes and tomato paste plus organic herbs, onions, mushrooms, and more garlic. She loved that I’d eat it too with her so she didn’t feel so ostracized but it really was delicious. If I wanted it to be vegan I’d use either a chickpea falafel mix or textured soy protein but DGD couldn’t eat legumes or soy so those weren’t safe for her then. I used some of these methods when DH was in cancer treatment and his diet needs were awkward. Thankfully DGD outgrew most of the severe allergies and can now eat anything but nuts - peanuts are still deadly for her and put her in the ER periodically from an unsuspected cross contamination. She still eats mostly poultry but doesn’t have to worry about getting sick if there’s meat in something. And I’ve really enjoyed our cruise dinners watching her experiment with new foods, what a joy! When she was 8 yrs old she was on a nasal feeding tube for several months to help her system heal. It was rough patch but now she’s an amazing, healthy woman of 29! Thank you Tina @0106 for all your inspiring ideas and showing us there are so many options we may not be aware of! Maureen

Happy Saturday all! @cunnorl 💞 Happy Anniversary! Anniversaries are such an accomplishment, and there will never be enough of them. Enjoy it together! Underwear Day. Hmmm. As an EMT I learned that too many people don’t wear underwear. 😱 I enjoyed many a beer in my younger days. Not anymore. Haven’t been to Japan. Probably won’t be going that far away anymore. Loved pasta salads, so versatile and satisfying but rarely indulge in the carbs anymore. Well @marshhawk Annie, here’s the cruise scoop: DH is VERY glad we got through this eyes surgery and ready for living life and having some fun, so he found a cheap cruise out of NY to Quebec and back on NCL Joy. It’s a B2B so technically 2 cruises, one is 9 nights, other is 7 nights. We had cancelled our car trip to Newfoundland for the 4th year in a row- cancer then COVID, moving cross country, more COVID… This cruise will stop in western NL but not near our friends in east NL so that trip will wait until 2024. I’ve always wanted to do the New England Canada cruise so this is a good opportunity. It’s coming up fast and we’ll be gone part of August so even faster. But living life when we can! It’ll be interesting to try NCL again, did 3 in the distant past and they were all fine, but times have changed and we’ll learn that we, as only Gold level, probably won’t get into the better shows because the reservations will be full. We’re not in the premium rooms, very happy for a plain balcony! But it’ll be a good break and we’ll see some new places. And see the grandkids where we’ll leave our car north of the city and train in to Manhattan. I’m excited! They’ll cook! We’ll eat. Blessings to all in need of healing, comfort or hope! And those waiting… the hardest part! And new paths for Chuck and Lou and Mr Boston everyone experiencing a shift in life, because Shift Happens! Cheers to those celebrating. Life is Good! Smooth travels to all who are away especially our cruisers. @JazzyV Vanessa, thanks for all your help keeping track of us. DH can be on the rotation, still hoping to get off the itchy eye drops! Our cruise is Sept 4-20, NCL Joy! Hoping you will be out of pain soon, pain is exhausting. Praying for a new path for you! Everybody remember, Today is a good day to be happy! One more thought: A pastor that helped me through a tough divorce was happy to hear I was getting married again. He said that’s GREAT! I said yes, but it’s pretty scary. He said, “Most great things ARE scary!” That was 1992. Life with DH Richard is Amazing! And I was sure scared about moving cross country 2021 but I’m really so glad we did, it was for all the best reasons. But I’m not up for doing scary things every day! Maureen

Wow! Mary Kay, When you put your mind to it you put the rest of you into it too! Rest, it’ll all happen! Excited to say we booked a cruise! Two actually. NY - Quebec-NY. Not as fancy as Roy’s but it’s one I’ve wanted to do. One month from today. NCL Joy! More about it tomorrow. Good night all! Good morning to friends afar! M—

@Mr. Boston Happy Retirement Day! Oh what a day of mixed feelings and prelude to a new chapter! Congratulations! @Heartgrove What a proud moment to carry the USCG flag, and I bet that flag got feeling pretty heavy by the end of the parade. Thank you for your service, and thank you for posting your photos. @1ANGELCAT What a relief that Barb made it through such a very long surgery. @Denise T Wishes for success! @marshhawk You have a lot happening. Good luck on the exam. Envisioning all good news! @smitty34877 Glad to hear that Lou can eat something. I changed our entire approach to food when DH was in treatments. One day at a time. Wonderful you found someone to help Tana during her aides time off. The pups sound good for you both! @Cruzin Terri You’re making it all happen! Hoping the floors recover. And that you too can recover. Emailed our TA last night. He had some questions this morning. We’ll see what he comes back with. Maybe a Sept cruise? DH is ready! Finally today I get my haircut. Boy is it beyond due. But glad we were conservative and able to get DH through his procedure. They asked if he had any COVID symptoms in the last 3 weeks. Worth everything! He showed me his daily pressure graph today, the pressure drop after the procedure is quite dramatic. Will learn more next week. Maybe he can reduce the eye drops? One day at a time, and very grateful. Blessings to all in need, all who are waiting for tests, for appointments, for results. Cheers to all celebrating. 👏 Life is Good. Smooth travels to all away, especially thinking of our cruisers. 🛳️

Great news Annie and Chuck! Too hot Gerry! Take care! Paul, enjoy the opera! 🎶

Got to the farmers market this morning then the grocery store. Hadn’t been for too long! Back in time for DH’s 2nd round of post-op eye drops and salve. Lunch, then ready for zoom yoga, cancelled. That’s ok, gave me time to rest! Gerry @ger_77 what a let down at the hospital. Glad he got scheduled for next week. Get some sleep before guests! Tomorrow I finally get my haircut. One of the many things put off for concern about picking up COVID or even a symptom. The hospital for the eye surgery was asking screening questions for any symptoms of COVID in the last 3 weeks. Now that we’ve gotten through that we can get done other things done. Will even look again at Sept and Oct cruise possibilities. We got his Sept followup appt combined with an optic nerve scan 31 Aug. Have a niece coming for a night Sept 2, happens to be my birthday so we reserved a dinner theater. Then I think the month is open! Hoping for some cooler weather and a little fun! Blessings to all in need of healing, comfort or hope. Near far. Baby Murphy, Chuck, Sue, Lenda, Vanessa, Lorraine traveling, Sam, Lou, and all the Care Teams! All of us! Remember: It’s a good day to be happy! Love the gorgeous flowers Nancy and Jacqui! 🌺 Congrats to Paul @kochleffel! You’ve only just begun…. Loved the story about the Torah class of engineers! That would be us! And cheers to all celebrating 🥂. I hope everyone can feel happy about something today. Maureen

@kochleffel Paul, thank you sharing the beautiful prayer. I certainly feel the strength offered here. My blessings abound. @smitty34877 Oh Terry, you got through a long day. Hope you sleep better tonight. Your mention of talking with folks in the waiting room reminded me of my experience at MD Anderson cancer center waiting for DH’s treatments. I quickly learned that there were many folks who were on their 2nd, 3rd and more rounds of treatments. But I realized that the patients who had success treatments didn’t come back! So I prefer to bring a book and sit by myself and hold hope that this round of treatment would be enough! So far so good! He’ll do his semi-annual blood tests in October. @Quartzsite Cruiser Lenda, you also had a long day. Hoping you sleep well tonight and DH will feel much better tomorrow and not need the long testing. @JazzyV Vanessa I hope you can get comfortable tonight! Maureen

Holding Baby Murphy, Lorraine and family close in thought, also Sam and Carol- of course you’re nervous! But you are not alone. Praying for Amazing! And for Lenda and DH’s procedure. Excited for Oliver’s new home day! Home from eye doctor which was after dentist, busy day. My Teeth are good! DH’s Eye is good! We picked up Rx eye salve to do with his post-op drops, he’s not crazy about that but I’m sure i can do it for him. It’s all good. Pressures were down, vision is clear! Amazing! Blessings about! Hoping for healing paths for @JazzyV and @marshhawkand DH. We’ll just have to keep hope up for Baby Murphy and Sam! Waiting is the hardest! I’m taking the rest of the day off! Well at least after I make supper. Didn’t get a full sleep last night, hard to spiral down after any day at the hospital. Tomorrow will bring its own happenings. Happy days to our cruisers! M—

Happy Birthday @lazey1 🥳 @smitty34877 Good luck at the infusion center. Hope it’s not far and a smooth trip for you both. Anxious moments with tge pump alarm! Glad there was a help line to call and they actually helped. It probably upset the household. You guys are all Amazing troopers! Off to dentist for my cleaning, then quick turnaround to get DH to eye doctor. Life is good! Yes it is hard sometimes but hard isn’t a bad thing, it’s just part of life. One foot in front of the other. Thanks Vanessa! I’m no longer a fan of potato salad. I’ll eat some if it’s on my plate but I haven’t made it in a long long time. @kazu What a relief that Ivan is getting helped from these injections. Hugs on this tough but important day. Catch up later! m—

@Cruising-along Surrounding Jeannine with prayers for miracles! There are enough for everyone! Maureen

A couple of old memories…. not the best pictures but what I could find…. Sandia Mountains are named for Watermelon, the color they sometimes turn in the sunset. Me celebrating (DSIL in background) at the top (11,700’) of Boston Peak, Gunnison County CO (there’s more than one Boston Peak in CO) 2003. m—

That’s a miracle to me! Praying it continues!

@Cruzin Terri oh no! Yes, you need a miracle! And deserve one! Remember to breathe, remember what’s good right now! Get yourself grounded, it won’t make your problems go away but help you come to them with more sanity. Wish I could bring you some ice cream! @marshhawk Annie, that all sounds like overload! But you know your limits and needs so sending you extra strength and courage now. We made it home ok. DH had some eye drops ( you’d think they’d have done that at the hospital! But I managed with removing and retaping the shield, then got him some light food and fluids, he’s nodded off. I’ve been texting family and friends. Hoping to know more tomorrow at first followup but reality is it will probably be weeks before we can tell much. One foot in front of the other! I’ve climbed 2 mountains, not major peaks but significant to me. Couldn’t do it now! Sandia peak in Albuquerque is about a 4600’ elevation climb up to 10,600’. The trail is about 5 miles, La Luz trail. At the top we walked the ridge across about another mile to the tram and took the tram down! Other mountain was Boston Peak in southern Colorado near Gunnison where I used to elk hunt, but I got to the top in summer, not in snow. I think it was 11,800’ but we started from a higher base, camped at about 10,000 so a much easier climb! If I can find pictures I’ll post them! Good memories! Maureen

Doctor straightened it all out, plus we had copies of the consent forms we signed in her office months ago so everything is set, he’s having it done now. It’s all good! @ger_77 so good you could get DH’s appointment moved up. Waiting is hard. But like me, I’m sure you’re grateful for all the miracles we receive! @Seasick Sailor, keep moving forward! later, m—

Waiting…. in pre-op. Some disagreements about what procedures he’ll have today. Different needs for anesthesia…. Haven’t talked to his doctor yet. We’re 40 mins behind but that’s not too bad. It’ll all happen and I just need to be present and breathe…. I’m confident she’ll take excellent care of him. He’s really a great patient, and I’m very grateful for each step! Susan, I’m sorry you’ve lost your friend Diane. I’m sure her cats miss her and are very upset. It was nice that the older one was taken in for a bit. Good for you to have the foresight to get some changes made to your paperwork soon, hard as it is. @smitty34877, so glad Lou’s nurse was amazing! 🙏 Blessings for you all!

Checked in at the outpatient center. It’ll be a day of waiting. I should have added that the eggplant slices should sit under the weight for a couple of hours, then rinse them off. @smitty34877 the chemo pump for 48 hrs at home sounds better than doing it in a facility. New methods! One day at a time is Everything! 👍 @kazu best hopes for Ivan and you today! @rafinmd Roy, I’m sorry you’re not in Alaska but happy for you to have exciting cruises coming up. Hoping your exit strategy from QM will work out. The availability of immigration staff should be an issue. Just the deviation paperwork. Happy to hear passports are coming through. I need to check with future grandson-in-law that he’s started the renewal process for their honeymoon cruise in Dec. I know they have a lot of details to deal with for the wedding but a passport is critical path! @Cruzin Terri, do they have the parts, or a replacement unit? 🤞 Mary Kay, @Cruisin Along? thinking of you and your transition to a new environment! Waiting…. thanks for being here with me! m—

Rabbits rabbits white rabbits! It’s gonna be a great day! Thank you all for your prayers, wishes and positive energy, helps so much! It’s been a long wait getting to this eye surgery to emplace a stent to drain fluid and lower the pressure. Amazing new technology. I’ll update later. @1ANGELCAT 🙏 for Barb, her care team and all her loved ones. Early treatment is rare but so hopeful. Love eggplant parm! I was taught to salt the slices and stack them in a bowl, put a dish on top smaller diameter than the bowl and add a small bowl of water to press the eggplant and draw out the bitter juices. Lost a dear GF 10 yrs ago to uterine cancer. Am blessed with more dear GFs! They are lifelines! Salute to CS Lewis! Be back here later! Blessings all! Maureen

@luvteaching Karen, being strong doesn’t mean that you can’t have feelings and tears. They are important parts of us too. Happy Birthday to your DS! 🥳 Great to hear that @Scrapnana is through her chemo! 👏 Many thanks for the positive thoughts and good wishes sent for us tomorrow… you all are blessings in my life! m—

We did get the expected call with DH’s surgery time tomorrow- 12:20 with 11:20 arrival. Very relieved! Once in the mountains house we had a 0530 check-in, had to arrange to come the day before. This setup should be easy! Blessings for Baby Murphy and family. And Terry and Lou, and Annie and Chuck. And all in need of healing, comfort or hope. And Terri’s AC! Thanks everyone for being here with all your support. Smooth travels to all away, and cheers to those celebrating 🥂. I was at the Dangerfield Club once in NY. I like avocados and watermelon but not together. We were in Recife 2013. It was impressively hot! I think that was when I realized I couldn’t enjoy an Amazon River cruise. Thanks for all the beautiful pictures! Have a great day everyone. m—

Cooling off in Maryland, nice respite. My FIL from my first marriage was a gem! When my father died, he told me he’d always be my dad. He walked me down the aisle when my DH and I got married. His last years were sad. He remarried after being widowed but was soon was in a facility where I visited him often. His wife was so appreciative because I really did know him and his history better than she did. I still replay much of his wisdom and talk with in my heart. My DH’s father died long before I was in his life… I wish I’d known him, he was brilliant and had 150 patents. I have a pretty piece of amber on a neck cord from Chiapas. Mostly I remember it was very hot there! The granddaughters loved afternoon room service cheesecake on our cruises! Tomorrow we should get a call telling us what time to be at the eye surgery center Tuesday. We’ll take anytime but morning is easier when fasting. I’ll be anxious waiting until we get the call! Interesting that in March his surgeon told us that even though it was Ramadan, she didn’t fast on surgery days so she could be at her best for her patients! @cruising single Mary Kay (I hope I got the right blue bubble) my hat is off to you getting through your downsizing. We are pulling up boxes from storage that we moved from NM in 2021, a few at a time trying to purge before our next move to the NJ community. It’s very hard, the hardest stuff got left to “do later”. Blessings for a smooth transition to your new environment. Are you in GJ? That was my “first life” out of college as a geologist. Learned to fish and hunt, loved CO! Then jobs went away and we moved to Albuquerque in 1983. Couldn’t give away a house then. But better times have returned there. Wishing you the best! @smitty34877 thinking of you checking in DH tomorrow for chemo. When we’d check in for radiation, the smiling receptionist had a plaque that changed my thinking, “ It’s a good day to happy!” Hugs to you Terry! @ottahand7 and @JazzyV Thank you for the flowers! Hoping the connection is good for Ruth’s memorial service. @marshhawk I hope you and Chuck ate well and enjoyed the show last night! And that you get some relief from your pain. @ger_77 Glad DH is getting relief from the gout. Sounds like all forms of cherries are on your list! @Quartzsite Cruiser Relieved to hear the fire isn’t growing. Enjoy the convertible ride tonight. Thanks to CC and cruising I have some extraordinary friends! Blessings to all the Care list. All the Dailyites. All in need of healing, comfort or hope. Those grieving losses. Those with worries and ill loved ones. Those here and afar. Thank you all for being here. Cheers to those celebrating, Life is Good! 🌈 Hope all our cruisers are enjoying! Smooth travels to all away. Be well and safe. m—