Diabetes in Check...Check, Thryroid in Check...Check, Flu Shot in Check...OUCH!

Well I went for my 6 month check up with my Endocrinologist this afternoon she and her associate gave me the thumbs up, and lose weight speech!

My A1C was down from 8.4 to 6.2 (normal is 5.8) and I need to get my thyroid checked in two months (they lowered me from 225 micrograms to 200 micrograms) of Levoxyl.  I can get a bit confused with the thyroid medications as they are completely backward, or upside down from what you think regarding medications.

Anyway when my doctor left the room she was still smiling so I figure I did good! Oh and I had them look at my foot (the one I dropped the oxygen tank on) and it is not broken, but if I have any trouble to see my regular doctor!!
THANK YOU GOD!



And on the flip side I hope you had a hauntingly horrible devils night!!

See you all on the flip side!

Off to battle the ants and bees and spiders OH MY!

Well tonight at dusk, (because most wasps and bees are nighty night by then) I am going to plant the NEW black raspberry bushes that Direct Gardening http://www.directgardening.com replaced already!  I also use Brecks, http://www.brecks.com and Springhill Nursery, http://www.springhillnursery.com online or catalog...if an item you buy does not flourish within 1 year of planting send them the appropriate (usually the mailing label with packing slip) and they will replace at the correct planting time or as soon as possible! I will not be buying from anyone else again!!!

So far today Twink is like VELCRO she keeps trying to get into my lap! I was busy making an Anniversary Cake for my young cousins Joe and Alexis Doherty, one year today! I absolutely love Alexis sense of style here is the cake I used Picasa to make...

And now that I am finished, I wonder where Twink went? OH right next to me in her commandeered bed, poor Lucky!

Okay in from planting Black Raspberries. Root Hormone check, Preen check, Diatomaceous Earth check, Big Black Spiders...not so much! Though the big black hairy outside ones do not bother me as much as the white skinny house spiders do, they still took me by surprise there were at least 5 of them at one time marching right for me. And with me sitting on the patio not a fast mover on my feet let alone...anyway job done left water on a trickle to give them a soak. This is what I hope for next year...

Gobbled down a can of Dinty Moore and off to the showers! See you all in the funny papers!

Even Grocery Shopping can be a lesson from my Lord...

After Saturdays trip to the grocery store, I am glad to be home and snug in my pj's!!

This guy, one person behind me in line started calling someone rude in a very LOUD voice, because they had 25 items in the 15 item line! When I turned to look at who was yelling he said "Yeah You" so I said "I hope you are not handicapped next time you are in a grocery line." his answer.."F**k you B**ch" in the middle of the grocery check out area!!

I made the motion tick the lock and zip your lips then, reminded him there are children in the immediate area and to act his age! I asked the cashier if I had taken too much of her time and apologized, she said it was fine. I turned and asked the girl behind me, she said the same no problem, I apologized and all the while she is giving me a roll of the eyes, but I had my eyes locked on  the jerk. He still retorted "Well at least I am not a F**king Rude B**ch!!!" I shot over my shoulder on my gimp cart as I was leaving,

"May God Bless You" his answer was "Yeah like that is gonna help" my thought was, yup you are right it is not going to help a moron like you. Yes, I got a bag boy to take me out to my car!!

McQuillen's Law....

I would swear if I did not have bad luck...lets see we will start on October 10th...

I had the AT&T technician out to put me on the fastest of fast internet...he comes and tells me he cannot do what I want because the signal is not good enough! He sent another technician out to fix that problem, calls me and says it is too late and he would be back tomorrow (Saturday), I asked are you sure. Oh yeah no problem...Monday morning I am on the phone with AT&T again, oh Ms McQuillen the first date we have is the 17th...they basically got me by...so I agree.

Last night I noticed my Ooma Box flashing and checked out the system, no broadcast. Hmmmm I think I need a hot line to AT&T this time the guy says oh no problem we will fix everything tomorrow at 8:00am. The girl shows up at 11:30am and tells me she cannot do what I want I will have to call for an appointment!!!! I told her I had one for tomorrow, then you are all set.

I come into my bedroom to make sure the Ooma box is correctly connected and it falls on the floor and EXPLODES! I tried everything my geeky brain could think of but no go, I called Ooma, well for $109.00 I could give you the brand new Ooma and free shipping...SCCCREEECCCHHH hold it right there, I told him I could get that at WALMART! So he comes back and gives me another offer...$59.00 free shipping and a 3 month credit on my fees and taxes around $12.00.

So wish me luck I really need it, that they will still honor their offer after November 3rd!

I should join the geek squad and teach them a few things!

What a day, did I say what a day I had? Well let me tell you! First I woke up 3 hours early and could not get back to sleep watched TV got bored figured I would take my morning medications early. While going to get a glass of water

I thought hey I will have biscuits and coffee for breakfast, and make homemade biscuits and black raspberry spreadable fruit with my freshly brewed coffee that was set to brew at 9:00am. Which came and went so I had to set it off manually.

I did a little cleaning around the house and thought I should lie down because I was really exhausted. NO Twinkle Toes wanted to play, well that went on until I thought it was dinnertime, looked at the clock and it was...11:48AM. So back to pushing dust back and forth with the cats chasing the broom. And of course no shoes and what do I step on a piece of glass I did not know it until I saw blood spots all over the floor. Okay done for the day...NOT.

 I decided to unravel my spaghetti of wires behind my entertainment center in my bedroom because they are coming on Thursday to Upgrade me to the FASTEST internet speed they got 50mbps!

Oh what a mess I weaved, I got no phone, the printer will not scan, I stepped on an extension cord male end up, backed into my computer table and my 2 year old Toshiba 17.3 " laptop took a dive and smashed the LED screen, so I call Best Buy, it went out of warranty LAST @&$#^%*+-!~ MONTH!!! Now that hurt, and now I can't find the flashlight I JUST HAD A FEW MINUTES AGO, LUCKY...TWINK...Ahh what a productive day a great excuse to do nothing and just pour my heart out to the repairman and feign horror at the mess!!! The only saving glory is I can get the replacement display screen for about $90.20 and do the work myself!!! Have I ever mentioned what a geek I am!!!!

I have not met a computer yet...

Well the P.A. liked my heart sound but was concerned about how much I wheeze when I cough. She wants me to have a bone density test and hearing test. I know...I know...I am falling apart what else is new!!!!

Yeah, yeah I got it now!!!

Today I successfully got rid of Windows 8, have I said before how much I do NOT like Windows 8?? Well I sat myself down and thought I always win with my computers they are artificial intelligence and I am...well a human!!!

Now I could make a killing!

Twink had a great time running all over the place today, watching me put the garbage in black 2 mil bags (she loves to get in the garbage). Lucky heads for the hills as soon as I pull out a black bag and snap it open, chicken! While I took the dishes out of the dish washer Twinkle Toes had her front paws on the door of the dishwasher watching with an eagle eye at...nothing!


Well time for TV or I will be back to 103 shows that need attention! I will leave you with this it is something I used to say about my ex-husbands friend, his name you ask...how much wood could Chuck Wood chuck, if Chuck Wood could chuck wood!

HEY!!

Pssst hey lady wanna buy...

As I was saying he made me an offer I could refuse. I repeated I have NO MONEY and just then Mary...my ride drives by, and I instinctively know she will drive around the block. So I start moving myself to the corner just as she pulls up, the guy shows up and tries to sell her the necklace!! I was still feeling the effects of my medications so the ride home is fuzzy except for the guy with the jewelry that was funny, I told Mary I had the 20" necklace in my hand...14K but it had no weight.

HOME at last I was so tired I went to bed and slept for a whole day and a half!!! Lucky was a bit peeved but Twinkle Toes was all over me, and has been since. They are not so friendly towards each other as they were when I initially brought Twink home, she is leery of Lucky and he will just attack her for no reason! Him being a HUGE cat and her so dainty I worry...

Lucky Doodles

Twinkle Toes

Since the McReunion I have been trying to do my own housework...not doing a very good job. The home physicians assistant was coming for my yearly check up, free through my insurance company and medicare, so I swept and vacuumed before she got here. I was exhausted, my living room is only about 12'x20' and the way I had it carpeted the dining area is still hardwood floor the dividing line is an angle using what is called a Z strip. So the area I vacuumed was only 6'x8' I just huffed and puffed thinking to myself, you cannot do this anymore, and I was on my oxygen the whole time!

My Floor Plan

Well the Matrix P.A. showed up and gave me a physical at home she was so nice and very thorough! Some things she did not like and a lot more she did like! It took about 2 hours and I felt real good about her results and suggestions she want me to have some testing done...results to follow!

Take Greyhound and leave the driving to us...not so much!

SO, I took the night and day to make great memories with Sharon and Skip, took it easy and the bus STOPPED at the bus stop! The driver was very nice, though my cousin Sharon said later she did not like his attitude!

I was having a very difficult time getting comfortable and just when I do...potty break. Off I go down the aisle because being handi-capped I sit in the front of the bus and of course the bathroom is in the back of the bus, so down the aisle I go whoops hit a bump (I AM NOT KIDDING ABOUT ANY OF THIS) and landed in a very nice mans lap. Get back on my feet and we make a turn now I fall into another gentleman's lap across the aisle, I just kept saying "Next dance." It was a bit easier getting back to my seat, I tried to lie down, and decided this is not going to work! I went back online and chatted for a while on Facebook.

Now we get to Pittsburgh, PA and have a bus change this is about a third of the way home and I am treated like royalty! Uneventful ride to Cleveland, OH where there is not only a bus change but a layover of an hour. I went to the concierge or help desk and asked how this works with a new bus where do I stand/sit and wait, I am NOT going to miss the bus! So he gentleman looks at me and my name, asks me if I was the person the bus passed up in Ebensburg, PA to which I painfully replied, yes!

The whole station was like on red alert or something, I was walked to a seat offered water and they tucked my baggage next to me. After about an hour and a half our last bus of the trip showed up and we departed for Detroit, MI I was so happy! I knew my friend Mary would be there to pick me up so I just took my medications and zapped for the rest of the ride. When we get to Detroit I let all of the passengers out and I debark last, this is when I notice I lost one of the lenses to my glasses! The bus driver turned all the lights on and let me search, which did not take but a few minutes and I realized what a lost cause this was.

I get out of the station and it was windy and cold so I looked for a nook or cranny to set myself down and watch for my ride when this guy comes up and tries to sell me, get this a 20" gold (ahem) chain for 50 bucks it still had the jewelers price tag on it!!! When I say no he comes up with a bracelet to match the necklace and offers a joint price...Then...whoops stay tuned again, talk to you all later!

Hey y'all been away so lets start slow...with the reunion and the day after...

Let's see my trip on the bus to Pennsylvania seemed to fly by, this guy shared my front row seat and we talked and he fed me and we talked some more and he fed me again, his name was Ron and he was a sweetheart! And when we stopped over he was like a mother hen! When I finally got to Ebensburg, PA I thought he was going to cry (and he gave me more food to take with me!)!

My cousins Sharon and Skip were there and we first went to their place and then to the reunion. It was a blast I wish I would have stayed longer, not enough time with my family. My cousin Kathleen McQuillen sat with myself and my cousins for dinner and I took some pictures and movies...I just remembered that!

Now the stay was only for 18 hours so it went real fast, and the next thing ya know is Sharon, Skip and I are at the designated bus stop, and we watched the bus fly right by us!!!! My cousin Skip jumped in his SUV and tried to catch it, hmmm I wonder if it was he did not want me to be penalized or wanted me out of his computer room??? Gonna have to call him about that!

So having the bus pass me up and not even a brake light...I called Greyhound and realized it was Sunday and they were closed for the weekend?! Now Monday morning I am on the horn with the Bus Company they informed me that the proper repercussions would take place and that my ticket was good for Monday night. More to come...stay posted!!!

Busier than a Kat...lately bees got nothing on ME!

Sorry I have been busier than a...bee! You thought I would say one armed wall paper hanger or busier than a gopher on a golf course!

Any way tomorrow night I will begin my 13 hour journey to Ebensburg, PA! I decided to take a suit case because when I stacked up all my medications...well lets just say I decided to take a suit case, just an overnight bag.

I found a sweetheart that will pick me up at 6:30 pm and take me all the way to the downtown Detroit Greyhound Station (she is starting this trek from her house in ANN ARBOR) and come back and get me on Monday morning at 7:00 am for $50.00!!! Parking my car would be more than that!

OH and she will take all of my garbage bags out so the kids will not be tempted to be little farts! Already Princess Twinkle Toes can get into a sealed garbage can, get things out of the Kitchen sink and open my drawers in my bureau in the bedroom (I watched her do it!) that's when I call them little farty cats and Lucky Doodle Bug will follow right behind waiting for the spoils!!!!

So if  you do not hear from me for another few days...what am I saying I am taking this laptop with me on a 13 hour route one way and 15 hour route home! See you all on "De Bus"...

Poetry and Prayer...

I had a very thoughtful and prayer filled day and this popped into my head...

My Time, His Place

With what seems like lightening speed, time flies by,
The world as you knew it is gone, in a flash, in a sigh.

And all you really catch are glimpses of life here and there,
Sometimes the picture is pure delight, others deep despair.

Yet if you slow down and let God have the reins,
Relax and lay back, learn to read His simple signs.

His picture comes into frame, with His help we can see,
Where our future and place in His ministries is to be.

On this Earth with all of His creatures we can act the fool,
This place where human likes to think they can control and rule.

God will lay down His law, with His power, with His utter grace.
To survive, watch for Him to tell us where we belong in His place.

If it is to be a guardian of His garden, His Eden this place called Earth,
We must learn to Love each other, as He has Loved each of us since before our birth.

Copyright ©2009

Kathleen E. McQuillen, Jr.

McSummer Fest 2014...

I talked to my cousin Kathy McQuillen...yes we have the same name, how kool is that! Growing up neither of us knew each other but there are more similarities than just our name, she has an immediate younger brother with the same name as my immediate younger brother! She and I are both two years older than the aforementioned brothers... 

Anyway she will be picking me up from the Greyhound Bus stop in Ebensburg, PA on Saturday the 26th of July at 9:05 am, and taking me right to our cousin Sharon's house to freshen up for the family reunion!! I will stay with Sharon and Skip on Saturday night and they will take me back to Ebensburg on Sunday evening around 5:00 pm and I will be back in Detroit at around 7:00 am Monday. Twenty four + hours on the bus for ten or so hours with my family, are we dedicated or what. I love these family reunions this will be our third since we all connected 4 or 5 years ago!

I am taking my Virgin Mobile 4G wireless adapter for my laptop with me so we will have wi-fi while at the reunion party and will be able to Skype with family members that cannot attend. We will be at the Portage Pennsylvania Volunteer Firehouse though it is the Portage Firehouse it is located in Cassandra! 

A few years back a friend of mine drove me to Portage for our first reunion and the motel we stayed at...The Cassandra Railroad Overlook Resort...was right next to the building that we found out in the middle of the night was the firehouse! Alarms blaring and sirens screaming my friend Patrick shoots up out of his bed standing in his boxers and ready for a round like a fighter. I gently told him everything was okay and just lie down and get some sleep...this is after driving 9 hours straight through! Another lively adventure with me...

De Bus!! De Bus!!

Well today was pretty productive. I scheduled my Matrix nurse for August this is a free service provided by Health Alliance Plan Senior Plus, my supplemental health insurance plan. Every year they send an R.N. to my house to go over my medications, take my vitals and talk about changes in my over-all health. I also called back the nurse with prescription modification. Let's see if I can't get my medications cut from 27 to something more reasonable! And yes, 27 scripts and they all keep me alive!

Then I found a map showing where the Greyhound Station on Howard Street in Detroit. I put myself on street level and virtually walked around and found a parking area that has a  6 foot fence around it and someone in a cashier kiosk. The best part is that Howard Street Lot A is across from the station and Howard Street Lot B is kitty corner to the station which if I can park there will be maybe one city block of live walking. Oh this is gonna be a fun trip, I hope the seats recline...a lot!

Oh and the most important things..the kitties have started using the Cat Genie! NO MORE cleaning a litter box!!!

Lucky Doodle McQuillen

Twinkle Toes and Lucky Doodle McQuillen

Twinkle Toes McQuillen

Boring or well needed?

Ahhhh a quiet day, sleep and catching up on recorded TV, something I had been neglecting. There are over 21 recorded shows to watch and at 45 minutes per 1 hour show...yikes! See you all later on the flip side!!!

Mostly Mundane...

Well I know some of you may be thinking how could yesterday be topped! Now let me tell you this really is pretty usual for one of my more mundane mishaps.

 Last January I came home from my annual trek to see my friend Glenn Shakatko and his wife Sandra in Phoenix (another real fun adventure for another day) and I had been expecting something from UPS when I thought to myself, lets look out back. Actually, I said it to the cats not to myself.

Anyway I go to the back door and low and behold there is my package backed right up to the door, and as many of you know storm doors open OUT so I could not budge the door NO, because in Michigan this past January 2014 was one of a very...how should I say...accumulative snow! I got angry, which is so out of character for me, I shoved the door and to my utter surprise it opened and I lost footing in the snow slipping off the porch and into my...wait for it...wait...BLACKBERRY BUSH!

 Wearing only my nightgown and mother nature! Yes another youtube night for my neighbors, I thank my lucky stars it was 3:00 am and everyone but myself was asleep in the complex, I hope. So a few bruises and many, many scratches and no pun intended raspberries later I am still alive! So for another day I will tell you about the time...

My Gardening Adventure!

I bet your day was not as action packed as mine! I had purchased some Black Raspberry bushes and they finally came, so I soaked the bare root canes in cool water and took them out back and laid them out how I wanted them Durnham here, Heirloom there...and started digging whoops a few ants better go in and get the ant spray trudge into the house! 

I come back out and spray the ground...dead ants kool! So I dig in again and what is this why are all these bees flying around my head? OH OH OH and ants crawling up leg, I grab my cane and the ant spray and start spraying and swatting soon it calms down. 

Back to planting rats butt I forgot to take the tape off into the house we go to get a knife...come back sit down and dig into the soil again only to find I hit the mother load the ground is WHITE with ant eggs, larvae and wait a darned minute the bees are back only they are not bees they are hornets one got me in the neck (I am highly allergic) get up swinging and spraying again (this has got to be a youtube moment for my neighbors!) 

I give up planting thank my lucky stars I was done but did not water them. Came inside and fumbled through the drawer full of "Ut Oh Kathy Did It Again" to find the benedryl, phew I have a full unopened box of 100 kool! Wait they expired in July 2011 off to the laptop to go on line...to be continued!