Greatest global online bookclub in town

Their eyes are open and they are cute. They still crawl around on their bellies, no walking yet, but that’s OK with me. Do I have to take the side extender off the litter box so they can get in it? Then Momma will get litter on the floor if I do that – get a bigger rug for under the box I guess. Sigh.

One kitten has white on her head; it wears a black mask. Another has four white paws and another has a white tip on the tale. There is still the all gray one. The black mask one would be a good Zorro; chances are it’s a female and not male; is there a female Zorro?

LOL

I’m reading some Fern Michaels I’ve gotten from Booksfree; I do like that site. Serendipity is a good one.

oh my, Fur babies and real baby girl. How fun! I really miss having my dog. I like dogs and cats and babies too, for that matter.

I am interested in your ankle, Jo. I have worn Easy Spirit shoes for years but they have changed and I have changed. I went to a SAS store and they aren’t cheap. There is an outlet store down the road but they never have my size. I need a wide.

I think I may have a bone spur on the side of my foot. I can’t seem to find any shoe that fits.

Started a new Nicholas Sparks book – True Believer. Well, it probably isn’t new because it is in paperback but it is new to me. I gave the Blue bottle Club to a friend yesterday morning and she told me she finished it this afternoon. We had a gray rainy day so it was good for reading. We actually got very little rain and we sure need a lot.

Georgianna

Jacky, you can get Microsoft Works Suite 2006 from www.buycheapsoftware.com for $59. Works Suite has everything you get in “Office” except “Power Point”. If you hunt around some of the other cheap software sites you can probably get an older version cheaper.
Jerry

Congratulations, Jo!!! I really like her name too. Our son has 3 sisters, I know he enjoys being “one of a kind” in the family.
I also like kittens—–and cats. Our daughters had 2 Siamize, one at a time, and I had the care of the last one as the girls were away in college. Kooter would climb up my clothes to my shoulder and watch what I was doing, until he got too big. He’d greet us as we came home through the back door. I missed him when our youngest got an apartment that would let him live there too.

I went to my last adult ed “Microsoft Word” class last night, although my new computer has only Word Perfect. The teacher was very fast and I’m glad she had hand outs so I kind of know what’s going on. Tonight my last digital camera/computer class, but today i figured out how to send e mail photos on Kodak Easy Share. But its very slow on my dial up. I think I’ll see about high speed soon. And I heard you can buy Microsoft Word discs on Amazon, older versions, but cheaper. Anyone know anything about this?

Jacky Jones

Susan: We have an SAS store here but it is not an outlet.
Wish it were,becausetheir shoes are VERY expensive! You and I are on opposite ends of the size 6, as I wear 6S—-impossibe to find in any other shoe.
JOY

I think the cats choose birthing rooms the way they do because that, the birthing rooms that is, is US. WE are their ‘family’ so WE are where they go for comfort, solitude, peace, TLC, etc. Whiskers was not liking the box and babies where it had been since I got it and wasn’t happy about its location until I put it under the computer table. It was darker, for one thing, and the table top was close enough to feel like a cave (!) and my feet and legs were there. I spend quite a bit of time here at the computer and she was bound and determined to be where I am. I don’t spend all my time here, of course, and she is really torn as to where she wants or needs to be when I’m in the LR watching TV, reading or ??? Yesterday in the evening, she came out and played for quite a while but eventually trotted down the hall to her babies. They are like dogs in that respect but where dogs are happy (usually) wherever they get put, cats are waaaaaaay more particular. Independent little critters, actually!

1776 is GOOD!

JO, congratulations on all your babies, the baby-baby and the fur ones. Our cat had her babies in my closet once. I wonder what it is about our bedrooms!

I hope your foot gets better. I had a real problem with a very sore heel on my trip to Alaska three years ago this summer, but it turned out it was plantar facitis (not spelled right, I know) and it happened because I had started exercising my calf muscles a lot. I found that stretching my calves by leaning against a table or chest several times a day really helped. I also bought some OTC inserts, which helped too. Now I have almost no trouble with it. It’s possible that some inserts would help you too. I wear nothing but SAS shoes, too. Houston has an outlet store and when I go there, that’s where i get mine because they are considerably cheaper than up here. I wear their extra wide size 6, and not everyone carries that. I really don’t care if my feet are less than stylish.

I have to start reading quickly soon, as our real life book club is doing 1776 and I should have it read by the second Wednesday of April. I might get only to June or July of 1776 at the rate I’ve been going.

Susan

I love the name too. Congrats to all.

Love the name, Jo. Won’t she be spoiled having 3 boys ahead of her!!!!Best wishes to all, baby, siblings, parents, grandparents, and GREAT GRANDMOM
Joy

Alexis Avery, what a beautiful name!! Congrats to your g’daughter and husband. Glad she got her girl! And congrats to you, too, grammuzzy.

I’m sorry I’m having foot trouble, too, as stuff like that is NOT my idea of recreation. However, it could be worse so I’ll not complain. I’ve found I’m more comfortable in my LL Bean slides (no back to the things) than I am in anything else so far. I haven’t tried my Birkies yet, not with 8″ of snow still around even WITH cleared sidewalks! My momma didn’t raise no fools!

I don’t plan to do much about shoes or orthotics yet as I want to wait until after I hear from the dr when he gets the report of my x-rays. And if he doesn’t call me, I plan to call him.

I’m delighted you who have/are reading The Blue Bottle Club are enjoying it. I liked it very much myself; and Georgianna has it right – some good life lessons there.

I had cataract surgery in both eyes just prior to moving to PA in 2004, 3 years ago today, actually. My far vision is much improved; I can read the street signs way better than before. I didn’t need glasses for driving either since I was far-sighted but had bifocals with very minimal far correction. Outside of the better visibility for street signs, I haven’t noticed much difference. Colors didn’t improve a whole lot if at all. I have noticed that I am more susceptible to brightness than I was, like sunlight on the snow, and really bright days tend to bother me more than they used to. I bought Transitions the last few pairs of glasses I’ve bought and they work very well to cut that glare. I do need glasses for close work.

There are a total of five furballs; four black and one dark grey. I’ve not disturbed them a lot, but I did notice one has white markings on it’s face, like momma. But I’ve seen so white paws or anything else. They are so tiny – but momma is a good momma. I think they stay attached to her until she finally tosses them off and gets out of the box. Saving her sanity, I expect.

Supposed to be warmer again today which will help the snow disappear and boy, am I ready for that! Did I tell you all that I bought some panies for my two planters? I got a pretty blue with yellow centers, and also solid yellow. I wish I had bought the orange ones instead of the blue; I really need a spot of COLOR! Ah well.

BTW, g’daughter had her girl last night about 6 pm. Alexis Avery was 19″ and weighed 7 lbs, 8 ozs. Daddy and baby are doing well; mother is greatly relieved (no longer pregnant) and highly pleased (finally has her girl after 3 boys).

That’s all the news and comments from PA for now; take care everyone and be good!
Jo

My surgery was smooth, no problems. My cataracts were not too bad yet so I haven’t noticed a big improvement but have noticed an improvement. The one just done will continue to improve but I probably will need readers. I did have to get much lesser strength ones. I can see the little temperature and time on the bottom of the morning shows that I couldn’t see before and can see road signs easier when driving. I never did need glasses for driving.

I gave up on fancy strappy sandles a long time ago unless I was going to wear them for a short time. I have always had wide feet, even when I was thin and you can’t get fancy shoes in wide except now I can get them on the internet. Bridge today and WI tomorrow.

Jo, is it six furballs now and what are you going to do with them?

Jo: Your foot problem sounds EXACTLY like mine!! I have procrastinated in having it diagnosed, so will just listen for your doctor report, and maybe take YOUR doc’s advice.LOL
I DO know that what shoes I wear makes a difference, and right now I have gone back to “my old lady” shoes–SAS–and they feel better than all the “cutesy” sandals I have and would like to wear.
JOY

Jacky: When I had my cataract surgery it was my wish that I would not need to wear glasses anymore, but that was not the case. I still wear my bifocals, but with significantly less strength.
JOY

Jo, I’m sorry you are having a foot problem and glad that you have a help for it. And Darlyne, hope all is well with your new lens. I’m so satisfied with both of mine, however the opthamologist thought I might not need glasses at all, but I surely need them for reading unless the printing is very large and the light bright. And I have a little correction in my distance sight too, but do not need to wear glasses to drive, for now.

I’m reading the Blue Bottle Club and enjoying it, they had it at our library plus another by the same author.

I’ve been going to sign up for netflix for several weeks and just haven’t done it yet. I thought retirement had more time. We were to the funeral of a dear friend this am, we traveled with them in Mexico in a RV caravan for a month ,years ago, and went through the Panama Canal on a cruise with them, plus they are one of those rare “couple friends” for us. I don’t think Darlyne or Jan know them, they live near the Warsaw cathedral of the prairie, in the summer and have a home in Mesa during the cold months.

They did most everything together, and she has no hobby’s, but they do have 2 nearby children with grown families. She doesn’t care for reading. We’ll try to help.

It got down to 7 degrees this am, was 45 yesterday with rain, but it dried before it froze, and our Red River is rising, but no flood predictions this spring, thank God!

Jacky Jones

I did indeed have that appointment today.

The doctor felt, looked, ‘tested’ etc all he could think of to do and, since the system failed and he didn’t get the x-rays, he could only ‘guess’ that it wasn’t broken but was the result of tendon stretching (due to age – darn it). The fact that my right foot had pronated; that is, my foot itself not including the sole has moved to the inside. I’m sure everyone has seen folks who would appear to be walking on the inside of their foot. Well, that is what mine is doing and has been for the past 3-4 years. In truth, I felt like everything in my leg, ankle and all, was hitting just off the proper place on my foot. There are orthotics that are built for shoe inserts to help correct this.

Anyhow, he feels that since this movement is taking place, things are hitting the underside of the tibia (fibula?) and that is what is causing that broken-bone feeling underneath my ankle bulge sometimes. He said that when he gets the report of the x-rays that were taken and things aren’t this way, he would let me know. I plan to pursue it next week if I don’t hear from him sooner than that.

I have a Futuro ankle support which does help, as does whearing a shoe with a built-in arch support as Birkies have to a degree and as does the ‘clog’ shoe I bought from LL Bean. The arch support (good for the problem in the above paragraphs) does feel good and helps with moving the pronated part over, but the ankle support feels good in that I don’t get that walking on a broken bone feeling. I just wish Futuro would make them in flesh-colored material instead of black. Sticks out like a sore thumb and, while I’m not all that fashion conscious, I do tend to get weary of people staring! >:-[

At any rate, that’s the report. I did a bit of grocery shopping and found, when I got home, that Miss Puss had hatched another baby.

I dunno what my g’daughter has done yet but since it’s 11 pm and they know I usually go to bed fairly early, I probably won’t find out until tomorrow.

Thanks for asking about my ankle but I guess truth to tell, we aren’t yet 100% positive. I don’t know why Dr. Hayes, my regular doctor, would look at the X-rays and say it’s broken but the orthopedist after feeling and looking, doesn’t feel it is.

Take care, all, Jo

Jo: Am I correct in thinking you were going to the doc today to check out your bone (ankle????) Fill us in.
JOY

Hey, Jo, congrats on the furball babies. Perhaps by now, you even have a baby-baby in the family. Your family is prolific to say the least.

Turns out there are five furballs; four black and one a dark grey. I’ll consider keeping one of the black ones.

As for the human baby, that’s still working. Michele just called a few minutes ago and the pains are about 3 minutes apart. Papa Todd is there with her and her mother is with the rest of the tribe.

Things progress.

This is exciting Jo. Let us know how it turns out. Wow! Kittens and baby at the same time!!

about that hour Michele was told to wait; that had been 45 minutes ago and that’s why I told her not to wait any longer.

at any rate, here we go.

I am a furball gramma – Whiskers gave birth this morning to four under my bookcase headboard. Definitely a two-person job to get ‘em all out of THAT cave! They are now under my computer table, where it’s darkish and more cavelike. There aren’t any lightcolored babies that I can see and maybe even a couple of black ones. She’s a good momma too; she’s not been out of the box at all except to tell me she didn’t like it where I first put them all. She apparently is happy now.

And it looks as though granddaughter Michele is going to do the same thing, but hopefully to just one. She’s having pains every six minutes or so. I told her that since this is #4 for her, don’t tarry. She had called the dr and updated them, they told her to wait an hour and see. I told her not to wait as only her youngest is home right now – all the rest are in school. And someone will have to be available to get the other two from school. Right now is MUCH more convenient that even half an hour from now.

So things were exciting this morning. This kind of excitement is MUCH more ‘fun’ than 8″ of snow all in one day.

Jo

Jerry: I also thank you for mentioning the movie. My local library has it but it is out at the present time, but I have put a HOLD on it.
JOY

Jer, thanks for mentioning the movie with Sidney Poitier. I would like to see a movie like that. I’ll check it out.

I finished ‘The Blue Bottle Club” and I liked it. It was a delightful story and there are good lessons. ie. it is good to have goals but realizing good things may happen to redirect you along the way. Georgianna

I rather like that evil laugh. I felt a little smug myself when my bribe was successful.