BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: LilyFestre
Date: 05 Jan 11 - 12:58 PM

Ok. Scratch the plans for earlier. I decided it was time to lower the mattress in the crib since my Wee One is now pulling himself to standing! Sounds easy enough but it entailed pulling the crib apart, moving it away from the wall, moving other stuff so I could angle the crib and THEN undo the wonky lift/screw system to lower the mattress. It's raised and lowered by a very VERY stiff lever arm. Whew. Oh yeah..had to take the baby bumper off to which I had tied on VERY securely. What a pain in the tush! Meanwhile, Jeremiah played nearby on a blanket with blocks and a musical ABC toy. While I was working on the front of the crib, he spied the screws on the floor for the backside of the crib (had to take out all 4 before lowering) and that little bugger crawled halfway across the room to get his hands on a wingnut!! He only just started moving forward 4 days ago but you should see him GO!!! Of course I was right there and got to the stuff before he did....but shoot, he can MOVE!! LOL
   In the end, I was successful in lowering the mattress, Jeremiah happily played an extra hour and a half longer this morning and now I'm taking a break!!! Perhaps that bathroom floor can wait until tomorrow or maybe this afternoon if I catch a second wind. Whew.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: mouldy
Date: 05 Jan 11 - 03:36 PM

No, I haven't got a plumber's snake - a wire coat hanger did the initial work! There was years of debris in the trap, including gritty gravelly stuff...and the gloves have been dumped on the outhouse floor.

Michelle - the fun starts now! It won't be long before there are high shelves you never knew you needed!

Andrea

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 05 Jan 11 - 05:47 PM

Michelle - it was about at that stage with Limpit that I invested in a harness set (or walking reins as they used to be called in the UK) and one of those extending dog leads. Strap baby into harness, clip dog lead to harness. Several times I pegged her out on the lawn, so she could potter and crawl but not get into trouble. When she started walking (and it doesn't sound all that far away for Jeremiah) the lead meant I got an extra 3-5 seconds before my arm was wrenched out its socket and I didn't have to worry about her dashing off into traffic. It meant a few bumped bottoms but with a nappy (diaper), who notices?!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 12:33 AM

I used a harness with my kids also - it's particularly useful when they walk well enough that they want to be on the ground but are so young they don't respond well to voice command or have the ability to recognize danger or reason about what they should and shouldn't be doing. I got my harness (all cotton, fits around the chest, zipped up the back, and had two cotton ribbon lengths that were, for lack of a better term, the leash) at Sears. I think we might have used them for up to a year with each kid, if they weren't being carried in the backpack or on the hip.

I drove to a couple of Big Lots looking for another string of LED lights to use in my tree. These don't look like the holiday lights, and I found two strings yesterday. I may have to commingle a couple of brands. All of the lights in the pine outside and the strings on the crape myrtle inside came down today, and I found the boxes of motors, hiding in plain sight. :-)

Big load of laundry done, and the closet is looking better (not finished yet, though). Bills paid this morning, and a couple that I need to call about I'll probably take care of tomorrow.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 12:50 AM

I must just add, she was never left unsupervised when pegged out on the lawn and the lead (or leash) was on retract so there was never a loop for her to get tangled in....

I hit on the idea of the dog leash when I found that the long strap that came with the harness was just long enough for her to get her feet caught in, but not quite long enough for me to walk with her more than 50 paces without hunching over like Quasimodo and suffering excruciating back pain - and I'm not exactly tall!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Liz the Squeak
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 09:36 AM

I don't make resolutions but I have decided that this year I will attempt to finish things.. to that end, I'm working my way through the chocolates I got for Christmas, whilst hand quilting and catching up with all the programmes I recorded over Christmas!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 11:31 AM

This morning I blanched, peeled, and froze a quart of the tomatoes that ripened on the counter. It would have been easy to toss these little ones into the compost, but instead it is a little kitchen ritual - each tomato I pop out of the skin and drop into the bowl will be part of a bite of good flavor in soup or beans sometime this winter. I froze them in bags, 8-10 ounces of tomatoes in each.

My ongoing goal with the garden and food preservation is to have the pleasure and good health from growing it and eating it, but what I struggle with is this: today I saved myself the cost of a couple of cans of organic tomatoes. Maybe $2. If this was only about saving money, it would have been cheaper and faster to buy the tomatoes, but it isn't, it's about the holistic process one can achieve at home. I just wish I had more discipline in all of the other little $2 here and there that get away from me.

Liz, I also need to finish more things. It has been one aspect of de-cluttering, to clear things out. But as I go through some of this stuff I'm reminded of things I want to get back to doing (more projects to start and then to finish). It is a vicious cycle!

It may seem early, but I am aware this year that if I act right now I can have something closer to the garden I really want to have. Potatoes, beans, lettuce go in now, but I have to dig and shape it first. So I have more to do than ever this winter, when I should also be working in the house during the cold weather. Oy.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: wysiwyg
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 11:36 AM

Hardi and I decluttered the DVR of several hours' gospel music (to pick out offertory selections as a couple), and have several more to go. (Hope to knock them out tonight.) The result will be hourlong car CD's to learn tunes while we're on long drives-- meatball-style because this is music to learn by ear and then discard once we arrive at our own version of each selected song. In many cases (for the ones we decide to work up), we then buy an MP3 download (where we can find one; some of it is older stuff not in MP3 form so we learn it and record our own version to help us recall the tunes/arrangements).

It's a lot less work than the older process it always took to select band music and teach all members the songs. I'm so busy now that we expect the band to coast for several years on the songbooks we already created.

===

A revision we had thought necessary for several of those songbooks is now possible to do with computer-printed labels to paste in the changes; it's easier to edit and update our own arrangement copies of the words where they vary from the songbooks-- a lot fewer copies to deal with!

===

A doc's appt ydy resulted in reduction in BP meds and simplification of dosing/pill sorters I can now implement with the setup of the next set of pill-sorters. The effective BP-adjuster has finally been identified (guess who figured it out), and we're getting MUCH better readings. Also, since the last time I looked the pharmacy now has BP cuffs with more automatic features, so I can finally resume monitoring at home if we buy the right gizmo.

===

A planned surgery was discussed and logistics to make it possible are in the planning stages now. This will coordinate with my studies so I can combine rehab time with reading time-- some bed rest will be involved. The BP news coincides-- during bed rest my exercise program will not be able to work on the BP, but the med now controlling it has side effects that are minimal and, when on lowered activities, nonexistent. That means exercise can suspend during the surgery/rehab period, and after I heal I can do LAND exercise with HARDI.

===

During Christmas time I lost 3 pounds (probably more, I left my heavy shoes on), while the rest of the world gained. I did this relatively simply and quite painlessly.

===

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: maire-aine
Date: 06 Jan 11 - 08:10 PM

I don't really make resolutions, but I have decided to try to be more frugal this year. I could probably save a lot, just by cutting out some of the junk I buy, esp. magazines. I'll look online before I buy at the newsstand.

Maryanne

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 07 Jan 11 - 12:36 PM

The strings of LED lights for the tree are a little short as I've wrapped them so far. I'll redo it this weekend, see if I can cover all of the limbs. They're quite bright, and I may see if I can plug them into a little rheostat plug and dim them a bit. The changeable strings are "icicle" sets that I might be able to use now, so I may stretch them out and see if I can arrange them without the icicle look. They're the best set, they are clear or colorful, depending on the switch setting, and will blink, dim and glow, or show steady in clear or colors. I have a short string of clear rice LED lights that I think I'll stretch across the mantle and let them glow under the crystal, see how that looks.

I didn't take the trash to the curb yesterday, there wasn't much to go. But I'll make a run to the recycle center this weekend and I can drop the household trash at that same time. In the same room with the recycling I have a bag of flower seeds a coworker gave me a couple of years ago. I might stomp some of the dry flower heads apart for the birds and spread the rest around along the fenceline of the woods across the road. I think it's echinacea.

Every time it warms outside I realize I should go scoop the dog droppings, and then it gets cold again. I'll try to make that run through the yard later today, add it to the compost. It does more good in the compost than in the mixed Bermuda and weed turf. My compost for this year has been sitting there done for the last year or so, the poop and weeds from this year have gone on a huge pile that is imperceptibly shrinking with the rains and decomposition. Somehow I managed to stack it really high rather than wide. When I start the weeding this year, I'll start composting in a new location, and that tall pile will get used next year when it's finished. I have some wine that turned that I hate to pour down the drain, so I'll probably pour that in the garden directly instead of in the compost. Sugars are always welcome in the garden!

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 07 Jan 11 - 11:33 PM

I've tested the holiday light strings and am keeping a box of the newer ones. The really old strings need to stop being used, so they're going in the trash. I picked some bulbs off of one of the strings to have as spares.

Finishing up some kitchen odds and ends; the pumpkin bread has baked, there is a squash in the oven I forgot about. It's nice to find them again before they're a science project. :) I have some beef out to grind and make into taco meat for over the weekend, and I need to wash the dishes.

We're due for some really cruddy weather, possibly ice and snow on Sunday. Tomorrow I'll head over to Home Depot and buy a few hundred pounds of topsoil and humus to keep the truck more stable on the road. Pickups are heavier in front because of the engine and slip around unless you add weight.

I'm going to try for a family dinner on Sunday. My daughter thinks she can come by, but that is only if it is safe driving. And on Monday I take him back to the airport to head to Tuscon for the semester. I'll make it an easy meal, favorites, and let people munch and visit. Maybe bread or rolls, meat for sandwiches, soup, whatever.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 08 Jan 11 - 11:23 AM

I was a little fuzzy about that butternut squash. I found it in the back in the fridge, it wasn't forgotten in the oven. :)

I finished the hamburger meat- when I was a kid we used to fry the pound of hamburger and add the packet of Shilling taco seasoning and some water. And then modified it by adding tomato sauce. But over the years as a cook it wasn't enough to use a packet of seasoning (and those packets got fairly expensive). Now I use an onion, a green bell pepper, some jalapeno, and I mix my own seasoning (cumin, oregano, etc.). And then I add a can (or the equivalent if I cooked them from dry) of kidney beans or black beans. I realized last night that this dish is now down to being only 1/2 meat, the rest is veggies and beans, and probably much healthier. I use this for nachos, I use this as filling for burritos, use it like tacos, etc. So for my accountability portion of this thread, I thought I'd describe this. I don't count calories, but I do try to make sure I get a lot of fiber, and the beans do that for me.

I need to round up kid stuff this weekend to get my son ready for his trip west. I'll send him with clean laundry, etc. And I also need to start rounding up tax stuff, because both kids need to turn in their FAFSA stuff for college. If I can finish before the end of the month, we get them in line early for funding.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 08 Jan 11 - 11:51 AM

Me again.

Lots of organizing tips from Martha Stewart, and when you get to the end of this slide show, there are three others on different rooms and subjects that might interest you.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: LilyFestre
Date: 08 Jan 11 - 12:02 PM

Your burrito/taco mix sounds yummy SRS!!! Gives me an idea for later today...so thank you!

I went to WW this morning after being away for almost a month and I'm happy to report that I did not gain an ounce over the holidays! YAY! :) :) :)

My menu is planned for the day and I already tracked it all online. Double YAY!!! :)

Have a great day everyone!

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: katlaughing
Date: 08 Jan 11 - 12:30 PM

Congrats, Michelle!!

SRS...the beans and veggies sound really yummy. I thought you meant you'd found the squash in your garden.:-)

I am getting back on track this week, I hope. A "perfect storm" has been brewing, but it looks as though we have it under control, now.

I have three small packages to be mailed out, today. Rog is out of the boot and can do more to help, now, so I am hopeful he will be able to take the decorations bin out and put away a few other things. Oh! AND, he is going to four day work weeks, so he will have three day weekends every week! Now, we are looking at some projects which have been waiting for him to have more time!

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 08 Jan 11 - 02:06 PM

I made myself a couple of burritos, and the tortillas I used were home made and out of the freezer. I topped it with guacamole that I'd made from scratch and frozen in ice cube trays. If you're paying attention to the various raw ingredients in the marketplace, you can usually save money (versus buying the packages of guacamole in the produce department - that Avomex is great, but expensive) and I don't have as many ingredients. No preservatives. If you keep producing these things when you can, then you have them when you need. Right now my kids aren't living places where they can do this kind of operation, but I hope some of it sunk in over the years.

I bought a jar of tomato pickles at the place I may have described earlier - its a store called Vending Nut and it is open from 8am to 5pm, Monday through Friday, and from 9am to noon on Saturday. They package and distribute bulk dried fruits, nuts, and nut products (lots of chocolate, salt, peppers, etc. involved). And they carry locally produced salsas and pickles. So I tried some green tomato pickles. They also had a relish from red tomatoes. I have to try these then work out when to make them.

My friend Dean has opened my eyes to what relish and probably chutney (not that I've ever eaten it, but now I get what its' about) can do to dishes far beyond hot dogs and hamburgers. It's the acid in the preserved fruit or vegetables that gives a savory splash to other foods. I spooned the last of the tomato relish my neighbor gave me over the beans and rice I have eaten this week. So now that I've identified something that 1) uses leftover green tomatoes and 2) adds great flavor to foods, I need to figure out what I want to make.

NPR just reported that a Congresswoman from Tucson, AZ was assassinated while giving a speech at about 10am Tucson time. Several killed, many wounded. What is this world coming to? Must go find the story.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 09 Jan 11 - 02:24 AM

This afternoon I took a large bag of recycling over to the depot near here, and noticed a chest with art deco-ish lines sitting in the exchange area. It has an oak veneer, dove-tail drawer construction, but it also has some staples and nails and some cardboard in places that are a bit confusing. It isn't a fine antique, but it may date from the 1940s (or looks like it) and is an interesting and kind of ugly dresser. The mirror frame (the glass is missing) attaches on behind so when you look at it without the mirror, it doesn't look like anything is missing. The veneer has some chips. So, I figure this is the kind of found object that needs to have some plastic wood used to fill the veneer gaps before it is sanded, primed, and painted. The drawer pulls aren't all there, so they need to be replaced. It has interesting bones, so to speak, and I think I'll paint it in a high gloss enamel. So far I only brought home a can of primer, tinted gray so the paint doesn't have to work so hard (instead of being painted over bright white).

If I don't like this when it's finished, I can sell it or give it away. The price was right (free) and the paint won't cost that much. It also isn't so big that it will take that long to work on. I do need to clean it up, and someone did use some paint on it before, so I'll probably use the little circular sander and take most of that off before I repaint it. I may end up doing some sanding inside the drawers, since I don't plan to paint the insides. I don't think. I see a little crayon or maker in one drawer.

I know, I'm supposed to be getting rid of stuff. But this was just too tempting to pass up. I'll post before and after photos.   :-)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: wysiwyg
Date: 09 Jan 11 - 10:13 AM

The recliner sectional we got free has cleaned up well; yesterday we brought in the two pieces that needed repairs (springs re-attached), and did them together. Faulkner "helped." The two reclining pieces make a nice canoodling loveseat, which awaits Hardi's return from church later. They were nice yesterday for some music we have been reviewing before we dashed off to church-- bandmates were away so I sat in.

The third sectional piece is light enough to pull up as needed when one of us wants to stretch out or let Faulkner up-- that third piece is earmarked as "his". I have an ottoman that can either extend the length of the set for stretching out when together, or for a footrest for that center section if needed for F or a third hoomin (i.e. child).

The long-postponed sort/ship of CD cases is underway at last and will be out of my in-basket by week's end.

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: LilyFestre
Date: 09 Jan 11 - 02:42 PM

Today I made some homemade vegetable beef soup from leftover pot roast. Oh man. Talk about good! Healthy too! (all fat removed...or at least as much as possible!) Had some orange slices too. Both of my guys loved the soup and the oranges too! :)

Day 2 of journaling on the WW site! :)

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: maire-aine
Date: 09 Jan 11 - 10:53 PM

Spent several hours sorting thru the papers that littered the area around my computer. Got a bagful of to go to the recycling center & a lot of material filed away neatly. Still have a couple piles to go thru, but I'll save that for next weekend.

I'm going to try to go gluten-free for a while and see how that works out.

Maryanne

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 12:39 AM

I found some interesting crackers at Big Lots last week, Maryanne, made from rice and ground hazelnuts (filberts). Gluten-free and put out by Blue Diamond. I took a box to a co-worker who is on a very restricted diet, and she'll report back as to how good they are.

Kat, your calendars arrived last week; I hadn't been to the post office for a few days, but I found them on Saturday. Thank you so much!

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: katlaughing
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 03:34 AM

Wow, that was fast, SRS. I think we only sent them out on the 4th?

Michelle, I'd be interested in what you think of the new WW. I love tracking it online. Good for you, for doing so!

Rog was a trooper, today. He did the dishes, the litter boxes, and the trash. I did some laundry and picked up a few things here and there. I sat at the front door, inside, and watched Morgan play in the snow. Taught him how to make snow bricks by packing snow in one of the plant pots and tapping it out. He thought that was pretty neat.

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 04:48 AM

REally LTS on the sofa, can't be arsed to log out....

Kat - are you going to teach him to make an igloo next?

Decluttering my sewing corner starts today, as soon as I find the inclination and stop faffing about on the computer! :-D

I bought a small table yesterday so hopefully I can use that to stack stuff on and make it look at least tidy, rather than the pile of poo it is now. Plus the cat will be able to sleep on it without sliding sideways in an undignified but highly amusing manner. Of course, if I just stopped acquiring more fabric stash, it would help, but like the magpie outside the window right now... I can't resist. So many projects, so little time...

Swapped the old and rickety rocking chair for a new springy chair (Ikea's 'Poang') which now requires a green or brown cover to make it blend in a little more, so sewing stash will not go away just yet! Rocking chair was out the front less than an hour before someone knocked and asked for it - I wish them joy of it, whether they mend it properly or use it as firewood!

Anyway. I must away and do something constructive. Chocolate clearing duty must commence!

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: katlaughing
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 11:30 AM

If we ever had enough snow, I might, LtS!:-) He would love it.

I am back to baby steps, remembering to make a list and see that I've actually done something. Apparently I had a chemical reaction to the antibiotics which caused a lot of shaking and depression. I am all done with it, now, and feeling better..more capable.

So, this morning...I meditated in my sanctum and smudged the house with incense ( a good way to start out my day) started some laundry, watered the houseplants and made sure I have a full thing of ice water to sip on all morning.

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: LilyFestre
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 04:52 PM

Doctor's appointment for me this morning, lunch out with my Mom and some grocery shopping.

Kat, I think I'm liking the new WW program but it's still an adjustment for me...I've done Points for so long that this change up is slowing me down a little bit. I have to think a little more but mostly it's just Core/Simply Filling foods that are the best and most healthy choice. I think the higher point allowance makes people feel like they are having more and not being deprived and also, I really do like the new way they figure points. We've all known for a long time that 100 calories of cookies doesn't have the same nutrition as 100 calories of fruit. I do miss the points slider and am not overly impressed with the new calculator thing but I'll get used to it. I have been tracking online...would have started a few days earlier but the site had a glitch and I couldn't seem to get beyond the sign in screen. How about you? Do you like it better?

Day 3 of tracking here....still have to figure what my lunch points added up to before I plan dinner although I'm thinking whole wheat pasta with our own tomato sauce and a tossed salad. We'll see.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: wysiwyg
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 07:47 PM

Decluttered the "To Do" basket of a major project today, getting it out to Last Approvals for a quick "submit" tomorrow for digital distribution. It's amazing and quite interesting how many people can be drawn closer in community by consulting them at the right moment on content and process. At this point in the basket-emptying, it's a lot like watching a baby born into a communal marriage get born with all the extended family present and cheering, and then immediately grow up to walk down the aisle in white organza.

Also figured out the source of the Bottomless Hungries of the last few weeks: when I get physically busy (as with holidays and ministry crises) I get less study time, where the 100-170 calories in a brekky serving of peanuts over oatmeal and/or study snack has apparently been an important part of my weight loss; instead I get more NEED for calories and a confused metabolism. Easily fixed with a can of nuts at the brekky-making counter! Tra La! Shopping day is tomorrow and dry-roast peanuts iz on sale!

~S~

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 10 Jan 11 - 11:33 PM

I received my new modem today, but haven't hooked it up yet. I'll wait till tomorrow when I'm sure someone will be there to make the connection (I have to call my IP folks and tell them the new MAC address).

Last night I spoke to my son about the connectivity problem, but he said his computer was downloading and sending data quite fast. I unplugged the line to his computer in my equipment cupboard and plugged my computer line into that port. And it works fast. Darn. That means it was the router, not the modem that was on the fritz.

With one port down I need to replace the router. I use all four ports around the house (my son's room, my office, the BluRay player for streaming NetFlix, and the computer in the living room). I've had these pieces of equipment for two or three years, so I suppose it's time. When I replace items, I need to find the intersection of reasonable prices and new technology. There are now routers that are geared for farther and faster wireless connections. I don't have many of those devices now, but potential in the future is there, so I'll upgrade to a newer technology router for about the same price I paid for the one I'm replacing. I compared devices and ordered one via NewEgg that I should have by the end of the week. It's quite conceivable to buy televisions with wireless connections for the Internet, to buy BluRay devices with wireless in them (many of them now have an expensive attachment for wireless, but competition will probably force more of them to make it automatically part of the device). I suspect that as I replace the huge big-honker old televisions around the house, I could end up with something that gets a boost through the router.

My son arrived back at college this evening, and has an extra day to buy books. The Obamas are going to campus on Wednesday, which would have been the first day of classes. I hope he's able to go listen to the talk. The return trip timing was good, our drive to the airport was on a day that had cold conditions but none of the ice they predicted. The rest of the week is supposed to be really cold, and I'll be bringing the dogs in for the next few nights.

The dishes are finished, and tomorrow I'll do laundry. I see lots of school opening delays on the news tonight, so it looks like people are anticipating a slow start to the day. I don't need to go anywhere. No yard work this week, but I can start some seeds in the house.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 09:24 AM

LTS not bothering to log out...

Got the WiiFit Plus yesterday.. was too busy sorting sewing stuff and sewing to try it out but will do so later today.... if it gets me back into doing something even once a week, it'll be a plus. About this time last year, I spent the night in hospital after massive chest pains so I know I've done nothing on the WiiFit since about then.

Ah well, keep it going.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 12:05 PM

Modem is set up, works fine. Didn't take too long talking to the cable folks to set it up. I'm awaiting the arrival of the new router. The old one is barely working now, so I may operate with the modem directly into the computer until the router arrives. (It means no NetFlix over the TV until then, or I'd have to plug the modem straight into that device).

The dogs are in the house today because our weather is very cold today, though I did put the fleece jacket on the pit bull and send them out for a few minutes just to be dogs and sniff around.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 12:09 PM

Tried out the new Wii FitPlus... there are some fun things on it, and some killer excercises for the upper arm - I knew birds were leading us on!

I am sad to say I am back at the weight I was 2 years ago, which explains a couple of things but apparently my WiiFit age - based on balance and mental agility is that of someone almost half my real age! And after the angiogram last month I know my arteries are clear and my cholesterol is good.... must just be the lack of movement in the last year.

So... 30 mins today, a few calories burned, knee is a little ball of fire and it's time to make dinner.

Enjoy the day chaps!

LTS really, - can't be bothered to log out.

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 12:44 PM

Don't worry about where you were, Liz, just work on where you want to go, and you'll get there.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: wysiwyg
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 01:02 PM

Also once one has muscled up, it takes a surprisingly short length of time for the muscles to get right back to where they had been, and resume their fat-burning work.

Some trainers/coaches say that an annual weight-gain cycle of variance amounting to 5-10 lbs. is not unusual or problematic for people who work out-- that athletes can relax about that much offseason gain, because the resumption of seasonal workouts will soon drop it back off to "fighting" weight.

It's when we gain more than that, our bodies cannot quite cope as well.

~Susan

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: maire-aine
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 01:09 PM

Halfway thru my 2nd gluten-free day, and I doesn't seem to be as hard as I expected. Made a pumpkin custard (pie without the crust), which can double as veggie or dessert, and will make some tapioca later. I had a chicken from Sunday, so I'm still finishing that.

Maryanne

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 11 Jan 11 - 08:45 PM

The pumpkin pie I made last week could easily have been baked in a pan without the crust. And it was good with Splenda, making it a source of protien (milk and eggs) and veggie (squash) and pleasure!

The dogs have been in quite a bit today. It's like having a fan club always at my heels. They're asleep on the rug in my office (a few feet away) and if I move to another room, they'll move also. I guess dogs that are used to being in the house have a different concept of time, space, and what to do with themselves. That said, I know these dogs well enough that when they go to sleep at night I can tell which is which in the dark by their doggie snores. :)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 12:59 AM

I sent the pooches into the garage for a while this evening, and when they came in I gave them baths. They're still a little damp, but snoozing comfortably on the carpet in here. We'll all head to the bedroom in a few minutes, and by they time they head out to pee in the yard in a few hours, they should be completely dry.

Roasted chicken in the fridge, ate lots of veggies and fruit today. Too cold out for much exercise. Maybe this is why a Wii would be a good idea? For days when going out isn't an option.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: mouldy
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 02:36 AM

I dug mine out a couple of days ago. I didn't use the Wii Fit, because that means shifting the coffee table, but I played on the sports resort. I'm too competitive on bowling and frisbee, and they do my shoulder in. I'm hopeless at golf, but quite good at the archery.

I must get the table moved and the board out!

On the house front: having read the paperwork on the permission for the rebuild work, it seems I have to have an archaeological survey before work starts, and allow room for a materials compound on site. That will probably mean bye-bye lawn for a bit! I am going to be contacting builders in the near future to get prices. I spoke to a local guy yesterday, and he said it was too big a job for him as a one man business, and that the demolition would be a large part of the cost.

Andrea

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 11:38 AM

Andrea, I would put vegetables in the front yard. Depending on how formal or informal you want it to look, you have a lot of choices. I learned last year that the arboretum in Dallas used Swiss Chard as the edge around several gardens. It is a lovely plant that comes in many colors, all of them edible. Garlic, onions, they are as elegant as any iris leaves, etc. Some of the determinate tomatoes (they ripen all at once then the plant is finished) don't get so big and straggly as the indeterminate varieties I usually plant.

I cleared out a drawer of paper in my kitchen queen and found stuff I'd forgotten about ages ago. It is now in a basket in the office area where I can see it. I have a several-years supply of post-it notes I didn't know about. The drawer in the kitchen queen now holds a variety of ornaments that I don't use in my tree or mantle displays, but would work okay in a table centerpiece in the holiday season. One more drawer to empty (batteries) and store somewhere a little more logical and easy to find.

Got down to 20 last night. The sun is coming out now, but I don't think we'll get above 32^o today. My canine pack is sleeping in the bedroom right now, but they'll wake and be bored eventually, so I'll have to park them in the bathroom for a while or send them out to the garage. I left the heater on high out there - it doesn't warm the room, it just keeps it from freezing.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: mouldy
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 01:13 PM

I grew Swiss Chard in my last garden. The main problem here is a relatively small area, with no fencing. I might put some herbs in, though. I've got a rosemary ready to plant out. I was going to edge with box, but I may use dwarf lavenders.

About an hour ago there was a knock at the door, and it was the joiner I used recently, enquiring about the annexe door which I want to replace. Given the work and carnage that may be going on near it, I've decided to postpone that job till afterwards. However, he's coming in about a week to fit some shelving into a cupboard in the "little room/study".

Andrea

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: katlaughing
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 03:46 PM

qi gong twice this past week

Michelle, I am reserving judgement re WW...I don't think I like it as well. Will keep using it for a couple more weeks and see where I am at. Seems like too many points allowed.

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: maire-aine
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 04:06 PM

I guess the east coast got clobbered with snow again, but we only got about four inches, so I ran the snowblower this morning. Went out to lunch with some folks I used to work with. Fortunately the restaurant serves "breakfast" all day long, so I had eggs & sausage. Made my tapioca pudding when I got home. It's so simple; I wonder why I don't make it more often.

Maryanne

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 12 Jan 11 - 10:58 PM

My Mom made a lot of tapioca pudding when I was a kid, so for me it falls in the comfort food category.

Another really cold night, so the dogs will come in. Last night I didn't close the bedroom door and they stayed put in their beds. They're such creatures of habit now, going to bed when it's dark out, that even though they're in the house they go to bed and stay asleep all night. They spent most of the day outside, indicating that they wanted out, even though it hovered around freezing all day. It's what they're used to, and is more interesting with squirrels and cats to bark at.

There is a stack of backpacks still in the hall, evicted from the closet during tje sorting and stacking the holiday ornaments, so tomorrow I'll find a place for them to live. I'll cull a few I never use.

Laundry is finished tonight, I did some shopping, and I finished a couple of things for work this evening that I was tired of looking at. I listened to the Obama speech. One couldn't help but think that the Obama girls were in his mind when he spoke of the 9-year-old who was killed.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: mouldy
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 02:29 AM

There's a WW meeting in the village, but I haven't been. I'm still not sure how user-friendly the new system is. My cynical head says that WW is primarily a business, and that they seem to reinvent themselves every 2 years or so, which must coincide with a drop-off in sales and membership.

The points system/filling foods worked for me when I used it properly. I know protein intake is also important, but I still see the new plan as a money-making exercise, and somewhat complicated from the outside. However, there may come a point at which I hold my hands up and acknowledge that I need the threat of a weekly weighing hanging over my head!

Andrea (who needs to concentrate on portion control)

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 08:41 AM

REally LTS not bothering to log out.


I came to the conclusion that things like Weight Watchers and Slimming World and all those other 'weekly fees payable' organisations work by taking all your hard earned money so you can't afford the luxuries of chocolate and butter.

Mind you, it's double edged because these days a McD's regular meal costs less than a low fat pasta salad and is more satisfying to the mouth.

I will try to increase my fruit intake, although I don't have the inclination right now... in a downward spiral towards 'black dog days' at the moment and comfort food is about all that is keeping me from killing someone. At least now I can recognise that it IS a downward turn and know that it will get better.

LTS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: GUEST,mg
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 11:17 AM

maybe your body does not operate well on low fat pasta salad and fruit. Many do not..have you read up on insulin resistance, metabolic syndrome etc.? If you have it, and most of us have some degree of it, your body will do just great with the chocolate and butter and not the pasta. Starches are really really bad for someone with that type of metabolism, and if fed in excess will lead to diabetes. mg

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Manitas_at_home
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 03:27 PM

My body hasn't operated well on any level recently and has just been diagnosed as having arthritis in parts of it.... as I'm not even 50 yet, this is a tad downheartening!

I don't actually eat pasta salad - I was just using it as an example of a low fat, vitamin packed healthy meal that costs more than the high fat, empty calorie meal that unfortunately I do eat... The Duchess of Windsor, Wallis Simpson said 'one can never be too thin or too rich' but it seems in some areas, one can only be thin IF one is rich.

I shall go back to my walking to the station and using the Wii Fit as long as my knee will stand it, and try to reduce the fast food to no more than twice a month. Chocolate you will have to pry out of my cold, dead hand.

LTS who can't be arsed to log out.

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: LilyFestre
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 03:53 PM

Laundry, dishes, swept, vaccuumed, organized taxes, bank statements, bills, insurances and of course, taking care of the Wee One. :) I'm going to roast a chicken for dinner to go with some carrots and potatoes, maybe a salad if I'm ambitious. I'm hoping to mop the kitchen and bathroom here shortly. Jeremiah has two teeth trying to break through and he's pretty fussy today. At the moment, he's napping...the child should be worn out...you should see him GO! Also (forgive me if I posted this already...I forget if I did or not), we are teaching him basic signs. He has the sign for more down really well. Today he was sitting in his hoppy looking at 3 Cheerios he had dropped on the floor, looked at me and did the sign for more!!! Other signs we are working on include Mommy (he can say Da-da), kitty and all gone. There are more but those are the ones we are working on right now. :)

Time to kick back and relax for a few minutes.

Michelle

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 07:31 PM

All of those firsts for him will be such fun! I remember my son's first word was the name of one of the cats. :-/

I have an opportunity, should I wish to take it, to give myself a cleaning goal of January 29. That is when several of my co-workers are having one of their weekend lunches at a barbecue restaurant. The one they selected this month is a few blocks from me and is my favorite in the area. I'm going to go to the lunch, and if my house is clean enough, I'm thinking it would be nice to offer an invitation for them to stop by for a while. I've never had any co-workers over here because I'm kind of off the beaten path (I work in the next town over, where all of the rest of these folks live) and because it has been such a work in progress.

Our cold weather continues, but I was reminded on a television program yesterday of some good indoor exercises. Richard Simmons was a guest on the Nate Berkus show, and he did some of the exercises that involve lifting household things (bottles of wine, etc.) but even better, he reminded me that I used to do the step exercises with a box I built (there is a computer on it now, but I could use my sturdy plastic step stool for this). Up and down to a musical beat is a good stair-climbing exercise.

I picked up some onion sets and seed potatoes today. The onions cost as much as a pack of seeds and produce about as many bulbs. As soon as it warms a little for this gardener to get out I'll plant them, and put the potatoes on some of the raised beds that I used for tomatoes last year. I'm moving things around this year, and I'll start the early stuff on existing beds.

We have a long weekend, and if I finish a newsletter this evening, I might take tomorrow off and see if I can get started on that dresser I picked up.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 13 Jan 11 - 11:46 PM

The new router is in place, but the company sent a rather pushy program to run with it that I don't need. I can simply address the router and make all of the settings or changes I want.

The place has gotten to be a mess with the device management. Boxes, padding, shipping boxes, instructions, all over the place. I must pick up the house and office some this evening.

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: Stilly River Sage
Date: 14 Jan 11 - 02:17 PM

If I am thinking about having co-workers over in two weeks, then a systematic cleaning is called for. Even if I don't invite them over, it would still be nice to have the place up to speed by then.

I started with the smallest room this morning, my dressing room outside the closet, and cleaned the counter, mopped the floor, dusted the contents of the room. There is an empty wicker basket in the kneehole of the counter, and I need to find something suitable to store in there. Pillows, towels, or yardage, whatever. Blankets.

I was working late last night so I pulled up NetFlix and re-watched Dial M for Murder. Last time I watched it I realized that because it all takes place in one room of an apartment with glimpses into the other rooms and out into the hall and a street view, that they were very careful with the set decorations to make that one room look rich yet not cluttered. Very tasteful. There are the mix of tall and short objects on table tops, etc. The setting of some things in front of others, it is all beautifully arranged. Not cluttered. I won't look at this as my only source of decorating inspiration, but this is what encouraged me to put the Chinese Shouxing figure and a tall brass lamp on the library table, and they look really great.

Time to get out my Clutter's Last Stand by Don Aslett and give it a quick read through. (If anyone else is interested, he has many books out and you're likely to find them in half price book stores and garage sales.)

SRS

Subject: RE: BS: Welcome 2011: Declutter & Accountability
From: katlaughing
Date: 14 Jan 11 - 03:54 PM

I had what I think might be a good idea for non-profits. I would love for the local humane society to send over a volunteer or two who can help me with going through and packing up stuff to donate to their store. I think they could offer that as a service with a small fee going to the volunteers and all of the stuff to them to sell. I have thought about paying the gal who used to clean for me to help out and I like her, etc., but I'd love helping out the humane society in a more direct way and I think it may actually be something which could really take off in a community which has so many retirees, etc. Thinking out loud for now, but I think I'll call them next week.

In the meantime, I wait for Rog to help on the weekends.