Brrr

 It was 42F for the high today. The closest I have been to outdoors is when Tommy opens the front door. I think it was low 30s Last night. With the heat on 70, my room felt frigid when I walked in. I had a hard time getting my feet warm in bed. Then, acid reflux kept me awake. I finally went to sleep around 8 and Tommy woke me before 11. UGH

He took the microwave out to street and put the free sign on top. Ridiculous!

He is making spaghetti right now. I finally showed him how to make the onions caramelized and tasty. He always had tasteless onion. AND, I convinced him to put pasta on before he finished the sauce. We will have a salad with spaghetti. I am getting hungrier by the minute. 

I am still working on what to get rid of around here! It is really satisfying just to make a list knowing all this will go. 

The electricians are absent and silent. They must have told me a date they would return.  Curious. I am looking at paint colors for interior. Tommy hates white trim. So, I suppose we will use blue and a shade of the same blue for trim. This is fun planning. He is not complaining about upgrading all the trim. 

We are circling in a holding pattern waiting on doctors to call! 

There was no snow here, but we had snow close by. Did you have snow?

Today was quiet, as you can see. There were things to do, but they did not get done. Oh well.

Decluttering, Feeling Puny, Spaghetti

 There has been no rain in three weeks. Last week, we had 0.003 of an inch of rain. Or, was it 0.03 of an inch. Either way, that is not a lot of rain. Combined with the leaves falling and something growing to which I am allergic, I am fighting a battle to the end of the month! Humidity is 29%, just the way I like it whether hot or cold. 

The first time I was ever ill the whole month of October, I had just gone back to school, taking a heavy load. I failed one class and dropped another. The class I failed was a humanities participation class, 1 hour! Other students asked me how I failed that class. Easy! You don't ever show up. These were lecture, dance, theatre, and always on Friday night. I went to class on Tuesday and Thursday that semester, plus one class on one Saturday, and a Sunday class. Going on Friday was just something I could not handle. So, I failed. I was beyond annoyed at my state of health. Every year since then, 30 years ago, I have been ill every October. 

Ground beef is now $3.99/lb. and boneless skinless chicken breast is $2.99, prices I have not seen so low in almost a year. Hopefully, this will be a trend, lower meat prices. 

I had a coupon for a free loaf of bread. There was a bogo sale for the same bread. So, I should have been able to use the free coupon to "purchase" one loaf and get another free. I explained all this to Tommy when he went in to get it. But, did he get that deal. No, he gave up a coupon AND paid for a loaf of bread. If the coupon could not be used that way, I could have saved it until bread was not bogo. Did he do that? No! So, I have to go back and get some sort of satisfaction. He wasted a coupon. 

We took four little plastic grocery bags with things in them to the Thrift store and put them in the donations. Tommy insists that t-shirts should go in the trash here at the house. Finally, he said they had to go for donations even though these are old and will bring money. He wants to drop all old electronics into the garbage in front of the house. I really don't understand his thinking. But, three small bags are gone from the house. 

I have had a 42 ounce can of pimiento waiting to open and share with my neighbor for over a year. I finally did that, so one can and clutter off the counter in the kitchen. We took it to her on the trip to grocery and thrift store. There were seven people/cars waiting at the pharmacy drive-through, so we will do that another day. 

I am struggling to stay well. But, in a few minutes, I will wander into the kitchen where he is cooking ground beef for spaghetti. I will add caramelized onion, garlic, and olive oil to the jar of pasta. We can have a salad. 

On Monday, when I awoke feeling on top of the world, I looked for otc meds I keep in a bin in my bedroom. I try to never let my otc meds run out. Since I struggled to find dental floss in the store about 18 months ago, I had bought a box of six from Amazon. And, where was it now? So, I uncovered my favorite dental floss, Glide Pro-Health Original. I have no idea if the shelves are stocked with what I need, but my bin is stocked. If there is any on the shelf, it is probably higher than the price I paid last year.

Friday Stuff: dinner, eyeglasses, groceries

Dinner Friday night was meatballs that were thawed put into a casserole with spaghetti sauce over the meatballs and mozzarella cheese on top. Everything was cooked previously, so this just needed heating to bubbly goodness. We had a Romaine and tomato salad. Tommy then had a meatball sandwich on a croissant.  

There is about half of the casserole left. I suppose we will have that Saturday night along with another salad. The meatballs were cooked before being frozen, so heating is all we need. Good! 

Maybe I will prepare three more of these and put them in the freezer. There will be nights I appreciate thawing and heating. Even slicing the mozzarella was a chore today. You know there are days like that. And, this was so good, I cannot wait for another.  

At The Pig I bought bananas. I still have not had one today. I will. I also bought bologna, three cans of Starkist tuna, one pineapple Mexican-made carbonated drink, and maybe something else. I cannot locate the receipt. That makes about $11 I have spent this week. I know I did not need the pineapple drink. The tuna and bologna are for stockup. 

I tried to make an appointment for an eye exam, sorely overdue. This was Tuesday. But, NO. I must wait for the "scheduler" to call me. That was annoying. So, she called yesterday and cheerfully told me that insurance, Medicare, will not pay again until 2022 since I just had new glasses in 2019. Or, something like that. 

After I thanked her, she seemed so happy to give me bad news and do her job. While I was waiting outside Tommy's doctor office this morning, I called back. I explained it all to her and how I had not had new frames since 1998, and that I had NEVER had an eye exam at this business. She checked and said I had been there in 2018 and 2019 but both of those were a medical problem. Finally, she got it right. 

So, after three calls on three days and 20 minutes today, I am having an eye exam. Scheduling should not be so complicated. Right?

One eye doctor has already defrauded the government by submitting a bill to Medicare for glasses in 2014 that I never got. I know this call was only 30 minutes out of my life, but these encounters are stressful. 

What is the longest you have used glasses frames? This makes 23 years for me. 

Things and I made pizza dough

 Wednesday, I was supposed to go to Huntsville to pick up documents to give to my attorney. When Tommy woke me, I said okay. Then, the came back and I moved and groaned. I think he came back a third time or either I got up. But, I told him I could not go, that I was too exhausted. So, we did not. An hour later, at 10 am, I told him I was tired and going to bed. I awoke at 3:45. Yes, I was exhausted. 

We went for a ride. I made spaghetti for dinner, using the seasoned meat from Tuesday night and dumped in the green beans. It was delicious until I dumped all but the first few bites onto the carpet. It was in a pile, so I used my hand to remove the top of the pile and left all the meat and the rest of the spaghetti and sauce on the carpet. A dishtowel amazingly removed it all. Not even a stain was left. 

After the spilled spaghetti, I was too disgusted to eat the leftover sweet potato! Wednesday night--a bit of spaghetti,  two granny smith apples diced, sprinkled with sugar, cinnamon and butter in the oven. 

So, spaghetti with meat and green beans, baked apples. Lunch was a bologna sandwich eaten at 4 pm, so I suppose it was breakfast and lunch about dinnertime. banana and apple. The spaghetti had red bell peppers and mushrooms in abundance. 

Speaking of carpets, the dishwasher guy unloaded the rest of the undersink items. I had a tub of stuff I bought and dragged it out before he came. Tommy had complained about me touching his stuff. So, his stuff was removed by someone else. The guy did not put it back which was okay. I told Tommy to let's go and see what needed to be kept and what needed to be thrown out. 

The four things the guy removed were all for carpet cleaning. Tommy said to throw them all away as I showed him one at a time. There is more of his stuff under the sink, but I was not going to deal with that right now or then, as it were. From the way he talked, the carpet cleaners were at least 30 years old. Things that needed to be thrown out are slowly being thrown out. 

A day later he laughed and told me when he first got the new carpet, he got down on his knees and cleaned every tiny spot on the carpet. He was laughing because he does not care now. Well, he cannot get down on his knees or use a carpet cleaner. He said he even rented a carpet cleaner!

I was so exhausted after the dishwasher installation episode, I did not even wash dishes. The next night, I put in a few things and ran it. Thursday, I will start washing the dishes from dinner tonight and the stacks of dishes that were here when I came here. I predict that our consumption of paper plates and plastic forks and spoons will decrease dramatically.  

The plumber managed to stab his index finger with a screwdriver as he inserted the little plastic screw to attach the toe piece on the dishwasher. He jerked back and sort of moaned as he snatched off the thin glove he used. He sort of rocked back and forth on his knees. He was shaking. I think he was trying to keep from crying from the look on his face. Or curse, or scream. 

He jumped up and put his finger under the faucet and I came and asked to see it. It definitely could use at least one stitch. He let it bleed with water running on it. I gave him a clean dishcloth and he wrapped it up. I didn't know where a band aid was located. I gave him Mupirocin to put on and then just gave him the whole tube. He was grateful and expressed it many times. I need to find the band aids!

Several months ago, I finally found pizza dough mix. I decided I would make pizza dough and a pizza. Tommy said sauce and cheese were find. He would prefer other ingredients, but said he wanted just cheese. 

If I had followed the directions on the package, it would have been perfect. But, no! Why follow directions? 

I bought a second brand to compare, so I may make that later because I need to eat or freeze the pizza sauce. It took a third of the 14 oz jar, about 4 ounces. So, I will freeze it in two half pint Ball canning jars. It is so expensive that I am going to make the next batch of pizza sauce and freeze the homemade one. I have found pizza sauce recipes on the internet. Does anyone have a recipe or advice as to how you make pizza sauce. It cost $2 for 14 oz. 

When my brother was about 12yrs old, he was a bottomless pit and my mother fed him all the fast food he wanted and all she could cook of healthy food. I had gone to school and learned from friends to make pizza. Maybe I was married. I told her how to make the pizza dough from a little mix, dress it, and make them in her oven without cost and leaving home to go buy food for him. Now, I forgot what I bought or did that I taught her. 

Now, I am going to the kitchen and load the dishwasher with things that are recently dirty and dishes that have been sitting here for at least a year before I arrived. Hopefully, he will allow the chipped and cracked dishes. If not, he can wash them himself. I don't want them breaking in the dishwasher. I have told him he repairs the dishwasher if anything breaks and messes up the new dishwasher. 

No, I am not making dough from scratch. 

breakthrough, breakthrough, breakthrough and dinner twice

After not sleeping one wink last night, I got up about 8 am when I heard Tommy was up. I sat there until 9:30 and I was sleepy. A banana and a glass of milk was breakfast. I took two more melatonin and went to sleep quickly. I had a black tank top across my face because I was facing a window. Then, I woke at 1 pm. That was not enough sleep. Now, at 8 pm, I am about to pass out even walking.

I had not done dishes for the last two days, so I got to that this afternoon. I was rinsing a large sheet pan and a nasty plastic pitcher kept falling off the back of the sink as I touched it with the pan. Finally, I took it to Tommy and asked him what to do with it. He said, "Throw it away. I don't care." Ten minutes later I took a water bottle with a cute picture on it and no top. Same question. Same answer.

Just now, I asked him what I should do with his cpap. He said to donate it. I put it in a box and put it in a cold bedroom. One day, he will let me throw it out. I doubt very seriously if anyone will want it. Do you think that a 20-year-old cpap has any uses now? The next time I ask him, he will say to throw it out.

When I awoke at 1 pm this afternoon, I sat for an hour and was very hungry. I asked him what he had to eat. Peanut butter, nothing else. He was fading fast.

Finally, about 4 pm, I went to eat Crowder peas and asked him if he wanted some, too. He did and we ate tomato with it. Still hungry, I cooked pasta and opened a jar of spaghetti sauce. There is enough sauce for another meal. Spaghetti? No, so I will buy more before the spaghetti sauce goes south. It is hard to get sauce and spaghetti even, like always needing more gravy or biscuit to even them out and finish at the same time. Who am I kidding? I will microwave the sauce and eat it like soup. If I cook too much spaghetti, I will drizzle it with olive oil and sprinkle it generously with Parmesan and microwave it.

Now, it is time to wash my hair and hope Tommy cuts the length off like he said he would. For five days he has had an excuse. He really does not want to cut it.

The temp was about 45 today, thankfully. This weather is too cold to go out to the utility room to do laundry, especially in a summer nightgown.

And, I want chocolate. Speaking of which, I have not seen Cella Chocolate Covered Cherries in the stores, the only ones I like.

Is it cold or snowy where you live?