Finally The Weekend...a Summer Cold...And More

 

So...which will it be, then...Gouda or Cheddar?

...excuse me...???

Which cheese will you be having with that incessant whine?

...pass the Kleenex and shut the hell up...

 

Face it...cats can be less than empathetic at times.

Especially when it disrupts their comfortable lives and routine.

 

Empathy was, like Monday thru Wednesday, okay???? Now you're just getting on my nerves...and clean up this mess...and what the hell is that smell???

Okay, I must be getting better because the mess is starting to bother me, too.

Today is a major Cinderella Day.

End-of-Summer colds just suck...not sick enough to just stop and lay down...too sick to do much of anything.

But it appears to be almost over...thankfully.

Oh sure...there was football.

Monday's SeaHawks in their new uniforms of highlighter green!

 

Thursday's Chiefs  (Watson) and the interception at the one yard line...by a rookie...and ran 99 yards for a touchdown...something that will be recalled for years and years. AMAZING!

And it was a great week for Ukrainians...and a not so good week for Russians...with the Ukrainian Counter-Offensive. They have been kicking ass and taking names.

 

And in politics...a huge blue wave is building...and the best part is that the GOP realizes it...

Only 53 days left.

 

But mostly it has been fighting a fever...and a sore throat...and hot tea & honey...and sleeping...and soups and broths...Covid tests and bleah.

...you're whining, again...

Sorry.

Haven't heard back from Hannah, yet...re: her PET scan.

Talked to KB this morning (who is settling now...having gone through entirely too much in his 17 years) but he knows this, too, is temporary and we will see each other soon.

Planning to see Nicole, Emma and Aiden in early October.

And fear, that like Preston, I may have lost Brenden entirely.

Divorce sucks.

John goes for another scan at the very end of this month and will be getting the oncologist, thoracic surgeon and cardiovascular surgeon on the same page before chemo, radiation or surgery.

We are planning a mini-getaway before treatment starts.

Unless you saw the diagnostics...you would never know he has cancer. He works out (rehab) three days a week and has been riding from 5 to 17.5 miles per day on the alternate days. Eating well and going into all of this in great shape and a good attitude.

It is going to be okay.

And like Sofi-Cat's buddy, Charlie...Gadget now has a feline pal from a door or so down.

Meet Mr. Wilson.

About half-grown tabby..like Gadget.

 

When I first saw this through the crack in the screen shot...I thought the eyes looking back were just a reflection.

Not so.

Mr. Wilson regularly visits, now...taking up the role of mighty squirrel hunter.

Complete with butt-wiggle and all.

The squirrels seem pretty unfazed.

So...yeah...just getting this mess cleaned up...planning a deep bubble bath and good food...and a relaxing weekend.

Have a quiet weekend.

Love,

Carla

 

 Mr.Wilson

 

 

Virtual China: Jilin Province

 

Jilin (pronounced zuh-Chillian) is touted as The Happiest Province in China. The meaning of its name is

"Along the River"

Bordered by Russia, North Korea and Heilongjiang...it is a tiny sliver in NE China. About 73,000 square miles and populated with 28 million people. It is also part of the CPC.

It is filled with precious minerals, metals, and oil shale.

 

Jilin is crisscrossed with railways and has a very advanced railroad system.

 

https://youtu.be/cdxnziQX0qQ

https://youtu.be/5jXyV6REP9c

Most of Jilin speaks Mandarin Chinese...but because of its close proximity to Korea and Russia some of both cultures influences can be seen here, as well.

 Jilin Korean Festival.

Korean in China

https://youtu.be/amL_u0Sjyx8

(...you can use close captioning for English translation but it isn't very good...okay...it is horrible...)

Most of Jilin's cuisine is borrowed from other provinces, including some from Korea and Russian which have been proclaimed horrible. Thus, we won't be doing a Jilin Dish.

 

A major attraction is Winter Sports here. Downhill skiing figures prominently. 

Winter Sports

 https://youtu.be/JuBTuX53yLU

 

Next we will explore Laioning.

Until then...

 

Jilin at night.

 

 

Queen Elizabeth II...King Charles III...and The Start of The Regular Season!

 

Queen Elizabeth II has been the queen for a long long long time.

(...how long...you ask...)

Well, when I was born in 1960 she had been queen for eight years, already.

 

When I graduated HS she was STILL the queen.

 

 

In the late 80s when I had my children..she remained the Queen of England

 

In the 90's when I graduated from  Nursing School...yep..still the queen.

 

When I became a grandmother in 2004 she continued leading her nation.

 

When cancer ended my career and then in 2010, my husband's life, she was steadfastly The Queen.

 

With two of my boys now married and a houseful of grandchildren in 2015 she remained queen.

 

In 2018 when John and I got back together after 2 separate lifetimes and the deaths of both our spouses...she was still Queen Elizabeth II.

 

With her 2022 death I came to the realization she had been ruler for my entire life.

The last photo of The Queen.

 And at 73 years old Prince Charles is now

King Charles III

The Queen is dead...long live The King!

And the regular football season has started!

Both the Colts and Chiefs play their first games tomorrow.

Colts at 1:00 and Chiefs at 4.45.

John and I are waiting with bated breath...and snacks, of course.

Anxious to see our new QB...Matt Ryan do his thing.

Equally anxious to see Mahomes again.

And in only one week we play EACH OTHER!

Which will be all kinds of exciting!!!!!

 

He has been working out at rehab and been riding his bike a lot on the off days.

Taking me along through photographs.

 

Holding our breath for the final (chest) MRI next week and then to get the team of surgeons together and the oncologist/radiologist.

We are planning a couple of days of normalcy before treatments start.

Okay...as normal as we EVER get.

So there's that...

Cinderella Day here...and maybe even some outside tidying before the rains come.

Have a Great Weekend!

Love,

Carla

 

Honey, I think the cat is broken!

Sunday:

Colts vs Texans.

Gaaahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh....

Football is going to be the death of me.

3-20 going into the 4th /quarter...then in one quarter we managed to tie it up to 20-20...

(...and I ate an entire bowl of ice cream because...damn...) 

But in OT with less than a minute on the clock our kicker MISSED the FG...

and we ended up with a tied game.

(...and that is why we drink...)

On to the Chiefs vs Cardinals Game. 

Ahhh...like the lemon sorbet they give you as a palate cleanser at a high-end restaurant between courses...

Patrick Mahomes.

My favorite QB.

And all the talking heads predicted disaster when Tyreek Hill traded to Miami.

Poor Patrick...whatever shall he do.

Well...at the moment he has 5 touchdowns...but we are barely into the 4th quarter...so we will see.

We won..we won...we won!!!

44-21

...but wait...there's more...

Tom Brady and the Buccs are playing their opener at 8:20.

...you know you've got to see...

Football Season's gonna be the death of me.

I have an hour to fix food!

 OMFG...

Okay...it is a crapfest.

Yes...I suppose defensively from both sides POV it is great...but here it is halftime and the only outstanding moment to me is a 45 throw to Julio from Brady...and absolutely zero TDs from either side.

The entire score so far is made up of field goals.

Ridiculous.

Brady has been sacked twice.

...which has to be rough on a 45 y/o QB...

but so far feeling very meh about the entire ordeal. 

And Tom looks like he has lost 50 or more pounds...and not a healthy look...gaunt...

Oh well...back to the game.

 And it's over. 

Buccs won 19 to 3.

Longest damn game of my life, and several hours I will NEVER get back.

Time to turn in....

ZZZZzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz

Labor Day Weekend...The End of Summer...And a Lot of Other Stuff

 

The Summer Patio's End...

Soon to be replaced with the Fall Decor.

A shift occurring at Brooks Falls and the bears, too...

151 (Walker)

856...and behind him in The Office...480 (Otis)

A cataclysmic power shift caught on video as the dominant male (856) who has been the alpha boar for several years now...had his clock completely cleaned by the enormous 747.

Walker who was there, as well, immediately put his head down in a sign of submission and stayed that way until the fray ended.

Poor Otis, who was trapped behind 865 just minding his own business, did likewise and skirted away as soon as possible.

747 completely overwhelmed 856 and then when the bear took a submissive position and would not raise his head or make eye contact the triumphant boar stood over him for a long long time.

747...the new dominant male.

(...and possibly on his way to winning this year's Fat Bear Contest...)

The salmon run and spawning almost over...after which the adult salmon will die and the bears go into hyperphagia...stuffing themselves before hibernation.

To be honest...the bears have saved my sanity this week.

A welcome distraction.

So much has happened, I hardly know where to start.

Hannah will soon have her PET scan to see if the cancer has affected any other lymph glands/organs.

John consulted with the thoracic surgeon after the biopsy's return and we now know that the cancer in his upper lobe is rare and much more difficult than we imagined...because of the vessel involvement and the position it may be necessary to reduce its size through radiation/chemo before it can be operated on. 

The good news is that Curry (a friend of ours) will be up for the surgery and will be picking me up so I can be there...such a worry off my mind.

In the midst of this we almost lost my sister, Lisa...who fell and laid for days before her daughter came to pick her up for an appointment.

Toesha probably saved her life.

She had not eaten or drank or been able to move/change position for days.

Bruised badly from the fall...and already having tissue breakdown from non-movement.

When Toesha found her she was already confused and then non-responsive from the combination of trauma/severe dehydration, and increased BUN/CREAT levels.

So thankful for Tina...who kept everyone in--the-loop over the past few days...and that Lisa's labs are coming down to a much more reasonable state...she can communicate now and knows where she is at...has been moved from the critical care unit to a private room and doing so much better.

She acknowledges that she can not longer live alone and will be transferring to assisted living when she leaves the hospital.

And John...who helped me deal with all the stress!!!

All in all, a scary ordeal.

So yeah...I've decided to take this 3 day weekend and basically do nothing but take deep bubble baths...relax...eat good food and love on the cat.

It will all still be waiting out there on Tuesday.

Have a Relaxing Labor Day
Weekend!

"More treats, please..."

Virtual China: Bamboo Tea

 

Today we use the first of our bamboo!

I'm excited.

This is the first time I've ever grown bamboo...and had no idea that you could use it for tea.

Here goes.

First you harvest 4 or 5 of the spiky leaves.

*yes...fresh bamboo does contain cyanide...but you would have to use a lot...a mean a whole lot...it is trace amounts...

Wash leaves in cool water and pat dry.

You can use them green....or dry them for later.

If you want to try green tea and do not have access to fresh bamboo..or don't want to wait to grow some of your own...you can buy it here.

https://www.swansonvitamins.com/p/uncle-lees-tea-organic-bamboo-tea-mint-18-bag-s?SourceCode=INTL4071&showPopup=f&DFA=1&UTM_Medium=Shopping&UTM_Source=GOOGLE&UTM_Campaign=+Healthy+Food&UTM_Content=PRODUCT_GROUP&SourceCode=INTL4071&gclsrc=aw.ds&gclid=Cj0KCQjw08aYBhDlARIsAA_gb0feP6QzX_3WA1512Rzk91aFgJA63goqAPufV2eRX_HE0r2nKee6spoaAmSyEALw_wcB

Dried, it will look like this-

and makes a darker cup of tea.

Fresh it looks like....well...bamboo leaves.

Making the tea is simple.

Place the fresh leaves in a tea cup...cover with boiling water...let steep for 3 minutes.

The fresh leaves will produce a green tea with a grassy smell but slightly sweet flavor.

The younger the spring leaves...the sweeter the flavor.

You can add a bit of sugar or honey if you want it sweeter.

The natural sweetness was a surprise.

All in all, very refreshing and nice.

Its benefits include anti-oxidants and anti-inflammatory properties. 

It is also suppose to be beneficial for skin and thicker healthier hair.

So enjoy!

 

 

 Next week we will check out the province of Jilin.