Simple Times, Simple Pleasures

 

Saying goodbye to the summer months is a difficult thing to do. I dislike being in the heat for extended periods, but I do enjoy the warm weather. I enjoy being able to wear shorts and feel the air conditioning units in high wattage during these months. I also love the other seasonal changes in the beautiful state of Oregon, although the rain can be a bit too much at times. One of my blessings, I feel, is to live in such a green, beautiful state in the United States, and part of the reason it is so green here is due to large amounts of rain and some sun. It seems wet through the winter months, but the summer is coveted because of the three months of the year that it warms us. 

Our fur babies are getting a bit antsy, and I believe it's due to the weather cooling a little. We are noticing a huge mat in Esme's hair, which means a trip to the groomer. Togo needs to have his grooming done, and Jasper needs to be held down while his nails are cut. This is a process each of them hates, so it does mean an afternoon of fighting, barking, meowing, claws, and nips if they can manage it. But we will survive. Cleaner, beautiful, and definitely better. 

Besides cleaning, making jewelry, and brushing our Togo, there has been plenty to do. My happy hubby and I drove to the park on Thursday again to enjoy our couple of hours of sunshine and greenery at the local park. Gorgeous day still, although cooler temperature-wise, it made for a wonderful outdoor dining experience. Terry had his usual Reuben sandwich, and this time I tried the Hawaiian at the deli we go to. Bob's Deli is down the street from us, and they know how to serve it up when it comes to sandwiches, salads, and other delightful edibles. 

I had never had the Hawaiian panini, but I thought I would give it a try. Lovely slices of ham with slices of provolone, topped with a slice of pineapple, between beautiful ciabatta bread that is covered with cream cheese. All of this is, of course, warmed as a typical panini is. I took one bite and fell in love. 

Terry loved his Reuben, but tried something different this time. Typically, the Reuben sandwich comes with Thousand Island on the bread. He asked for it to be served with a bread slathered with a favorite mustard. He loved the outcome! Mustard it is. 

***

A few days we experienced small batches of rain. The falling water soaked into the ground immediately, the sun came out and washed away the idea that we may have just hit fall. Higher temperatures hit again, although not as high as the past couple of months, but still, no rain. Dry ground and grasses were left on all the land around us. Along with that rain came a bit of lightning. I read about a fire or two that began from lightning strikes. Other than that, we are back to our dry heat, although the temps have come down into the 80s. 

***

I am literally cleaning out my bead boxes and making whatever may be left into bracelets and necklaces. My plan is to not purchase more beads or findings until more of these sell. The market is dry as of late, without many sales at all. I have one necklace to be picked up, and that's it so far. 

But the process isn't about making money. I genuinely love making jewelry. Gaining a devoted fan on Facebook, she is sharing my photos of the various pieces and sets I create, which helps out. My plan was to sell the jewelry I had and not to collect more, but here we are. 

Some of these pegs have two or three sets on them. I have run out of room and refuse to bring in another board. Now I have taken a small bin, put the finished items in baggies, and placed them in the bin. I have a plan to finish up all the beads, then close down the necklace, earring, anklet, and bracelet making process until some of this is gone. Even pulling a few selections to keep for myself, there is still far too much jewelry left. What can I say? I enjoyed it. 

***

We spent Friday evening in the park we love so much. Subway sandwiches, chips, and cookies for dinner, less than $30. Gas? About five when all is said and done. Nature and all her glory? Free. Time spent together? Priceless. 

***

A few days ago, I was sitting on the couch to get out of the office for a bit. I looked over at Esme as she jumped up on our dining room table. She promptly sat her overweight butt on the table, looked up at the ceiling, and went into a 23 minute stare. I thought she saw a spider or a fly, but upon checking, there was nothing. 

I began to giggle as I watched the pear-shaped feline gawk at the spider-free ceiling. Having no idea what kept her attention, I still thought her antics were interesting. My camera began to click, capturing our Buddha kitty as she was staring off into space, praying or whatever she was doing. It looked like some sort of communication was taking place. Communicating with what, I have no idea. 

Esme is seen gazing up at the photos we have on our walls. She has literally focused on each image for several moments, and it all makes me wonder, is she from this planet? Was she sent here from another world? What is happening in her mind? She is a very astute creature and tends to spend much of her time taking in all that the world has to offer from inside the house. 

Esme has always looked up at us, connecting with us directly in the eyes. That stare into our eyes can last for a while. I have never seen a cat do this, as most animals in the kingdom take direct eye contact as a challenge. She looks at people in a loving, caring way, and it makes me wonder who is living in that cat suit. 

***

Meanwhile, my 16-year-old chihuahua, Jasper, continues to live his life pretty well. He runs at the speed of light when it comes to coming to dinner, yet slowly waddles across the floor, showing his age, while walking to the office in the morning. Partially blind and deaf now, his age is catching up with him, but he does figure out where his food dish is in a heartbeat. I watch him as he stands securely, staring at the wall next to the door, waiting for me to open the room up for his entrance. Once I open the door, he still stands and looks at the wall, not seeing the opening right next to him. 

I enjoy the fact that he came into my life 14 years ago, from a home where he was abused. Our time together has been interesting, to say the least. I wouldn't trade it for the world. I will spend the rest of our time together, and enjoy every single moment, antic he pulls, and love each day spent with him. He is a character at times and does make me laugh. 

***

My husband walked through the office door on Thursday afternoon with a bouquet in hand. Another monthly anniversary date had arrived. Each and every month, on the 17th (although this was the 18th), he surprises me with a gorgeous bouquet of flowers. He hasn't missed a month yet, and I truly love him for that, and other reasons too, of course. 

***

In the kitchen, I have hung a piece of artwork that my granddaughter, Jess, made for me a few years ago. I love it! On Mother's Day last year, the girls got together and made tears flow by having a couple of aprons made for me. One was the original picture of Grandma's Garden, and the other was an apron that says, "Great Grandma's Garden," with all five of my great-grandchildren's names. Another apron was added that said, "Bakers Gonna Bake" on it. I love them all, but seeing all of the children's names and great-grandchildren's names on the front really brought out the tears. Happy tears, of course!

I finally found some hangers to put them up beside the artwork Jess made. The apron that matches the picture is underneath the apron that has the great-grandchildren on it. I figure the picture says that already. I thought about hanging another apron up next to it to be able to see the other apron, but I'm out of room on the wall. I guess the grandkids can't have any more kids, or I'll have to hang one behind the door leading into the laundry room.

***

Terry and I are getting to the point of losing our shit. The months keep rolling by without a word from Kia on when we might get the settlement. Our plan began a while ago, when we purchased a brand new 2023 Kia Sportage. We were excited, and the car drove like a dream. At least for the first nine months. 

To cut a long story short, our car broke down with the same issue each time, four times. The fourth time, we were done. Terry contacted an attorney to get us out from under the loan for that car. The Sportage only had 14,000 miles on it after all was said and done. It spent most of the time in the shop rather than in our driveway, while the payments for the automobile were still being made. Each time the car went in, it stayed for a month the first time, and thereafter at least a month and a half. The last time it was about two or three months before we heard that they simply cannot get the car to do what we told them it was doing, which was not accelerating. 

I'm still sitting without a car to work. Terry and I don't have a car to travel, making us miss out on our summer trip to the coast. It is beginning to wear on us after all this time. We do have the Xterra, which has hung in there for about nine years now, without a hitch, but we are worried about driving longer distances in it, as it is our only car, and it is older. If it breaks down, we are carless, and that is not a good thing. 

So we sit and wait, our lives put on hold. One income now and we are at the mercy of Kia. The attorney has looked into a way to rush it, which means putting in a complaint, but that could take a couple of months to go through, adding more time to the already frustrating and lengthy situation. So we sit and wait. 

Once we get out from under the loan, we can go on the search for our next vehicle. A work vehicle and one that we can enjoy driving on longer trips. Ah, but we sit and wait. Patience is a virtue, they say. I guess I'm not virtuous because there are some swear words I'm making up now. Out of jewels to keep me occupied, and now it's down to searching for my next hobby until this ordeal is over. 

But these are first-world problems when there are people out there who are starving or homeless. Wars are going on in the world. People are being yanked away from their families and thrown into other countries into facilities under the guise of deportation instead of calling it racism and hatred. I guess being blessed with one car and a nice, loving home with our fur babies is a great thing. We are blessed. 

***

Another Duck game was played on Saturday. This game was against the Oregon State Beavers, typically known as our rival game. The Ducks came out victorious, making the stats 4-0 for the season so far. 

I have to say, Terry and I were actually biting our nails in the first quarter. Our Ducks came out so strong and so powerful in the first game of the season, but then it looked as though they were struggling in the first half. Last week's game, they appeared to be a bit "off" from their powerful, bad selves, but won anyway. 

The final score of the rivalry game was 41 Ducks, 7 Beavers. Ducks stand at number six in the polls, after falling from number three before the second game. Just didn't look great in that one, although still a win. 

Next up? Oregon Ducks versus the Penn State Lions. That one is going to be a true testimony of how good our Oregon Ducks are. It's a tough game, but somebody's got to do it. Goooooo Ducks!

***

Have you ever had one of those days when you are craving chocolate? This can be an issue for a diabetic. I am trying to keep my numbers down a bit by eating more of the Mediterranean dietary offerings and by staying completely away from sugars. This means the heavy carb foods I love so much, such as pasta, breads, etc., are now forbidden in my mind. 

Carbs will turn into sugars in the body, and a diabetic's body struggles to get rid of sugars, including those sugars made by carbs. It's like eating sugar. What do you do to satisfy those cravings? Switch to no-carb foods, such as cauliflower tater tots and pizza crusts, or just don't eat a ton of carbs throughout the day. 

But then, there are those pesky sweet tooth moments that cause you to grab for sugar-free candies, cakes, and brownies. You either get very crafty in the kitchen, making these sugar-free baked goods, or you can purchase the higher-priced items on the market. I had a dietician tell me that you can eat the regular candy, just in very small portions. That worked for about six months in my case, and then it was, "Well, if one has this many grams of sugar, I can eat two and still maintain the amount I need to." Yeah, right. That worked, as I said, for a few months. 

I have been known to completely walk away from some sweets, too. It's not as if I turn into a sugar-grabbing monster that simply cannot handle not having the targeted sweets. I just decided to go back to the very good choice of having no sweets. While I write this, Terry picked up a huge bag of candy corn the other day for our picnic, and I placed them in the drawer in the kitchen. He ate a couple. I had one. But, there they sit, lonely, in the dark, all by themselves. Since candy corn is one of my favorite candies, don't think for a moment that I have not concentrated on them being lonely in that drawer. It's sad, really. Poor lonely candy corns. 

As of late, I have been reading about sugar alcohol that is in a lot of the sugar-free items and can cause the same reaction on blood sugar that regular sugar does. Sugar alcohols are often put into sugar-free foods to help balance that desired sugary, sweet taste of pastries and candy, but they can claim they are sugar-free because they don't put regular sugar into them. This leaves an entirely new dilemma in the diabetic quest for something sweet that won't mess up your stats. 

I began to examine my favorite sugar-free sweet choices, which I typically love. The sugar-free peanut butter cups by Reese's. The Hershey's sugar-free miniature candy bars. The sugar-free cakes and brownies by Pillsbury. All of these, which I have consumed in droves and serve to my husband too, all contain those pesky, nasty, body-damaging sugar alcohols. And I could not figure out why my numbers were not dropping as of my last blood test. I'm eating lots of sugar under the pretense of eating all sugar-free products. The solution? 

I began a search for products in the store that are actually sugar-free, including those free from sugar alcohols. I just about cried over all of the treats I go to when craving some chocolate or sweets, and finding they had the evil alcohols. It's all about making everything and making it from scratch, so I know what is in it. The second part of the puzzle is to eat very little. Small meals throughout the day. 

Craving some chocolate on this rainy Sunday, I wanted some chocolate milk. I took out my almond milk, added some powdered milk I use in bread making, put in a bit of almond flavoring, an alternative sweetener, and cocoa powder. I stirred it while it cooked over the stove. When it was boiling, I poured it into a large cup, added some zero-sugar Cool Whip, and tasted what I believe to be heaven. 

I shot my husband a quick text about it and asked if he might want some. He said yes. I mixed it up again, poured it into a cup, and delivered it outside where he was reading. In a short few moments, I received a text that said, "Delicious!" That made me smile. It was a triumph in the kitchen. One that is healthier for us as diabetics, but one that satisfies that sweet tooth! It's so rich, chocolately, and like I said, absolutely heavenly. Now I have a favorite drink to make during the colder months ahead of us. 

***

Onward we march into fall. It's raining today, reminding me of the days we have ahead. I will continue to make jewelry. Terry will continue to work hard, write his book, and study to be a bookkeeper, working from home. It's all grand on the homestead. I have even found a chocolate substitute for all the sugary nastiness that we have in our foods. Not a healthy drink in the way that vegetables are healthy, but it will come in handy for those cold days when that sweet tooth rears its ugly head. 

We will wait for word to come through on our car situation, and enjoy our moments together as time moves on. Patience is a virtue, or so they say. Not sure how virtuous we can remain, but it is what it is. 

Until our next post, have a very pleasant beginning of fall! Be careful out there with rain over the top of so much oil on the roads from driving in the heat. Once the rain hits that road residue, it can make your vehicle slip, spin out, and even hydroplane. Be safe. 

Love to you all. Hugs. Count your blessings, and shine your beautiful light!

Until next time, 

Terry & Vicki Macrae

Partners in Crime