Winter marches on in the deep south. It's hard to believe that January is almost over. We've had an interesting month, as far as the weather is concerned. We've had a low of 9 and a high of 75, a dusting of snow, a light coating of ice and tornadoes, all in the same month. Last nights low was 24 the high today is supposed to be 58 and then tomorrow we are expecting a high of 65 and thunderstorms.
Jacqueline's boyfriend, Daniel stopped by for a visit last night. He works third shift and passes within a few miles of the house on his way to and from work. They don't get to see each other very much due to conflicting schedules, but they talk on the phone a couple of times a week. He brought her a big stuffed Valentine Bear. She is thrilled with it of course. We are going to let her skip school on the 7th of February to go with him to see the Air Force Recruiter. He is interested in a military career and for several reasons we are hopeful that he will go into the Air Force. He has a dead end job right now, and I am impressed that he is thinking about the future and trying to improve his situation.
Randy seems to be doing good this morning. He didn't have a really good weekend, and seemed to be more tired than usual. He went to bed early both Saturday night and last night. He is trying yet again to quit smoking. It has been so hard for him to give it up. He has managed to cut down to 1 or 2 cigarettes a day, but even that is too much stress for his heart. I am so glad that I quit when I did. It will be 8 years in April. We both quit at that time, but Randy went back to smoking after being quit for 2 1/2 years. He has been unsuccessful in quiting since then. Only time will tell if he can do it this time.
Monday, January 28, 2008
Friday, January 25, 2008
Brown eggs
A little over a week ago I gave away the extra roosters that I had in my small flock. My flock's feed consumption has been cut in half because of this move. Since I had eleven chickens and seven of them were roosters this is not surprising. I kept two of the roosters, one because he is so cute and the other because I like his appearance and his temperament. The cute rooster is actually a Black Tailed Japanese Bantam and he was a bonus that I got in a trade. I had two drakes that I traded for some hens and the man threw in the Bantam rooster as a plus.
Jacqueline would like for us to get ducks again this spring, but I've told her no. If we had a pond I might consider it, especially if I had a separate enclosure to house the ducks. Having ducks in with my chickens was not an ideal situation. I am however looking to get some more chicks this spring. Currently I have four hens, although to date only three are laying. Two of the hens lay white eggs and my oldest hen, a Buff Orpington, lays brown eggs. The other pullet hasn't begun laying yet, so I'm not sure what her eggs will look like. I got an egg from the Buff yesterday, the first one in months. I am considering several options for acquiring my new chicks, but will probably purchase a few from the local Co-Op. If I order from the hatchery I have to order more than what I really need. I can purchase just a few at a time when I buy from the Co-Op. How I buy will depend upon several factors, including what type of chicks the Co-Op is going to have this spring. I would love to have 6 more Buff Orpington hens, but there are other breeds that would be acceptable.
I like being able to have fresh eggs. There are so many benefits that come from growing or raising your own food. It is a shame that we, as a whole, have gotten so far away from producing our own food. I know people who couldn't identify a tomato plant, or that don't know you can raise your own eggs or make your own jelly or sauerkraut. This generation coming up is so far removed from the land that they believe the only way to get food is to go to the grocery store and purchase something that has already been processed for them. Unfortunately they would starve to death if placed in a garden full of ripe vegetables or an orchard laden with fruits ready to be picked. If it didn't come out of a box or a package, often complete with cooking instructions they would be lost. I hope I have managed to teach my children differently. They at least know some rudiments of raising a garden.
Jacqueline would like for us to get ducks again this spring, but I've told her no. If we had a pond I might consider it, especially if I had a separate enclosure to house the ducks. Having ducks in with my chickens was not an ideal situation. I am however looking to get some more chicks this spring. Currently I have four hens, although to date only three are laying. Two of the hens lay white eggs and my oldest hen, a Buff Orpington, lays brown eggs. The other pullet hasn't begun laying yet, so I'm not sure what her eggs will look like. I got an egg from the Buff yesterday, the first one in months. I am considering several options for acquiring my new chicks, but will probably purchase a few from the local Co-Op. If I order from the hatchery I have to order more than what I really need. I can purchase just a few at a time when I buy from the Co-Op. How I buy will depend upon several factors, including what type of chicks the Co-Op is going to have this spring. I would love to have 6 more Buff Orpington hens, but there are other breeds that would be acceptable.
I like being able to have fresh eggs. There are so many benefits that come from growing or raising your own food. It is a shame that we, as a whole, have gotten so far away from producing our own food. I know people who couldn't identify a tomato plant, or that don't know you can raise your own eggs or make your own jelly or sauerkraut. This generation coming up is so far removed from the land that they believe the only way to get food is to go to the grocery store and purchase something that has already been processed for them. Unfortunately they would starve to death if placed in a garden full of ripe vegetables or an orchard laden with fruits ready to be picked. If it didn't come out of a box or a package, often complete with cooking instructions they would be lost. I hope I have managed to teach my children differently. They at least know some rudiments of raising a garden.
Sunday, January 20, 2008
Brrrrrrrr
This weekend we are experiencing some very cold temperatures, courtesy of an arctic front that is troubling much of the eastern half of the country. This weekends focus has been all about the weather. Things started getting interesting when the local weathermen began preparing us for snow. While not unheard of in this area, it is highly unusual for snow to fall in measurable amounts. A prediction of as much as 6" of snow set everyone in a tizzy. Television stations carried banners listing numerous cancellations well before the expected event. Because of the lack of equipment to deal with snow the caution is understandable I suppose. While we did see some snow in the state, I don't believe there was any location that saw more than about 2 to 3 inches. I had to laugh watching the evening news Saturday night. There was a child making a snow angel and while she was enjoying herself, there was hardly any snow laying on the ground. At the first movement of her arms and legs she managed to move all of the snow to expose the green grass beneath her. I guess if I had lived in this area all of my life my reaction might have been similar. However the amount of snow that fell here Saturday wouldn't have warranted much more than a casual mention in the weatherman's forecast in Connecticut.
We've been fortunate that the steps we've managed to take this time has so far kept us from having frozen pipes. I hope this is the last time this winter that we have temperatures going down into the teens. As long as it doesn't go down below about 25 we do okay. Much lower than that and we have to take precautions or the water lines will freeze.
Randy has been enjoying the football playoffs today. The game in New England was cold, but the one being played in Green Bay is something else. They have shown the people in the stand at this game and I don't care how many clothes the fans have on, there is no way they can really be warm as cold as it is there. I don't think you could pay me to go to a game under those conditions. We'll just watch from our comfortable couches and chairs and throw another piece of wood on the wood burning stove.
We've been fortunate that the steps we've managed to take this time has so far kept us from having frozen pipes. I hope this is the last time this winter that we have temperatures going down into the teens. As long as it doesn't go down below about 25 we do okay. Much lower than that and we have to take precautions or the water lines will freeze.
Randy has been enjoying the football playoffs today. The game in New England was cold, but the one being played in Green Bay is something else. They have shown the people in the stand at this game and I don't care how many clothes the fans have on, there is no way they can really be warm as cold as it is there. I don't think you could pay me to go to a game under those conditions. We'll just watch from our comfortable couches and chairs and throw another piece of wood on the wood burning stove.
Thursday, January 17, 2008
Charting progress
January is half over and time is slowly marching on. Each day is full of challenges. Some days there are accomplishments, other days failures. When just getting out of bed can be a hurdle to overcome the tasks that we gave no thought to yesterday may be one of life's biggest challenges today. This is how things have become with Randy. He has gone so far downhill that just standing for five minutes is exhausting to him. I have tried to remain positive and supportive of him. It is hard. He is depressed by his failing health and frustrated at the extremely slow process of recovery. Of course we do not know how far he can recover, but we intend to try to regain some of his health.
In order for him to develop and maintain habits that will assist him toward his goal of improved health, we are charting his progress. We are hopeful that the components of the program will become habits for him. Even little accomplishments are acknowledged and rewarded. We chart all of the steps that he needs to do, from the various exercises that he does to rebuild stamina, to A.M. and P.M. dosages of vitamins to whether or not he has been smoke free that day. Being smoke free is one of the most important steps in this process and so far he has not been able to do it. I am hopeful that his accomplishments in the other areas will give him the additional incentive to allow him to finally break his nicotine addiction.
Despite his current limitations he did manage to change the master brake cylinder in the truck over the course of the last couple of days. He took the old one off of the truck on Tuesday and went to the auto parts store when I got home from work. Yesterday he put the new one in. As minor as this job was, it was still an accomplishment for him because it required him to stand while he did it. Yet another small feat to be celebrated.
We didn't have a chance to bleed the brakes to finish the job because of the weather. It was miserably cold and raw here yesterday. At about 11:15 A.M. it began to sleet. It sleeted and snowed most of the day. However, because the temperature at ground level was above freezing there was no real accumulation. Raised areas such as our steps and porches were a little slippery from the slushy combination that collected on them, but the roads never got that way. The story might be different if this precipitation had held off and come this weekend. The temperatures this weekend are forecast to be bitterly cold, with daytime highs having trouble getting above freezing and night time temperatures in the teens. We will have to take steps to prevent frozen water lines. We've already had one episode of frozen pipes and don't want a repeat.
In order for him to develop and maintain habits that will assist him toward his goal of improved health, we are charting his progress. We are hopeful that the components of the program will become habits for him. Even little accomplishments are acknowledged and rewarded. We chart all of the steps that he needs to do, from the various exercises that he does to rebuild stamina, to A.M. and P.M. dosages of vitamins to whether or not he has been smoke free that day. Being smoke free is one of the most important steps in this process and so far he has not been able to do it. I am hopeful that his accomplishments in the other areas will give him the additional incentive to allow him to finally break his nicotine addiction.
Despite his current limitations he did manage to change the master brake cylinder in the truck over the course of the last couple of days. He took the old one off of the truck on Tuesday and went to the auto parts store when I got home from work. Yesterday he put the new one in. As minor as this job was, it was still an accomplishment for him because it required him to stand while he did it. Yet another small feat to be celebrated.
We didn't have a chance to bleed the brakes to finish the job because of the weather. It was miserably cold and raw here yesterday. At about 11:15 A.M. it began to sleet. It sleeted and snowed most of the day. However, because the temperature at ground level was above freezing there was no real accumulation. Raised areas such as our steps and porches were a little slippery from the slushy combination that collected on them, but the roads never got that way. The story might be different if this precipitation had held off and come this weekend. The temperatures this weekend are forecast to be bitterly cold, with daytime highs having trouble getting above freezing and night time temperatures in the teens. We will have to take steps to prevent frozen water lines. We've already had one episode of frozen pipes and don't want a repeat.
Saturday, January 12, 2008
Safe and sound
Things have calmed down in the area since Thursdays' bad weather moved through. It is unusual to have tornadoes in the area in the winter, but we did have some. Thankfully, no one in the immediate area was killed or severely injured. Television broadcasts Thursday afternoon and evening were all about the weather, taking over the airwaves to the exclusion of everything else. The storm front entered the area very strong and weakened as it proceeded east. There have been reports that two houses were destroyed locally, but we haven't heard any details as to exactly where the houses were located.
Jacqueline's birthday was also on Thursday. She turned 17. We didn't have a party this year. I haven't even had a chance to make her a cake. I guess I'll do that this weekend. She received some phone calls from family members wishing her a Happy Birthday, and I know those calls thrilled her.
Randy is about the same, maybe a slight improvement. He says he still doesn't feel good, but has been a little more active the last couple of days. Whether it is due to actually feeling better or because he is following my suggestion of trying to have small amounts of limited activity in an attempt try and rebuild his strength and stamina. I know he is not going to regain any of his strength if he continues to do nothing. I don't know if he can regain any of his strength, but we won't know if he doesn't try.
Jacqueline's birthday was also on Thursday. She turned 17. We didn't have a party this year. I haven't even had a chance to make her a cake. I guess I'll do that this weekend. She received some phone calls from family members wishing her a Happy Birthday, and I know those calls thrilled her.
Randy is about the same, maybe a slight improvement. He says he still doesn't feel good, but has been a little more active the last couple of days. Whether it is due to actually feeling better or because he is following my suggestion of trying to have small amounts of limited activity in an attempt try and rebuild his strength and stamina. I know he is not going to regain any of his strength if he continues to do nothing. I don't know if he can regain any of his strength, but we won't know if he doesn't try.
Wednesday, January 9, 2008
One step forward, two steps back
A line from a song goes "You take one step forward and two steps back". Sometimes that's how it feels around here. I get so frustrated. Randy will be doing well, taking everything he is supposed to be taking and doing everything that he needs to be doing, and then he will start feeling better so he slacks of, or worse backslides and has a cigarette. The addiction to nicotine is definitely our biggest stumbling block to improving his health. As a former smoker I understand the addiction and how powerful it can be. What I don't understand is choosing to do something that will prevent you from breathing, especially when that effect is almost immediate. If Randy has a cigarette at any point during the day, he then needs to be hooked up to the oxygen machine for hours, usually including the overnight hours.
I guess part of the source of my frustration is the difference in our personalities and attitudes. Randy is a grasshopper and I am an ant. Despite the fact that I was at one time a smoker, I have always been pro-active about my overall health. I have been taking vitamins and herbal supplements since I was a teenager. I have always had an interest in the effects that diet and nutrition has on ones health. I have also always been physically active, although not necessarily in a mainstream way. My attitude has been to stay healthy and independent. Randy on the other hand has always lived for today, for the now. Not thinking about the needs of tomorrow. As long as he enjoyed it, or it felt good today, let tomorrow take care of itself. This has been at times, a problem between us. Good thing he discovered early on that my planning and forethought could make things comfortable on a more consistent basis. However, there are still times that my guidance and advise has fallen on deaf ears.
Three years ago I told him all I wanted for our anniversary was for him to quit smoking. If he had been able to quit at that point he might not be in the situation that he is in now. He has done irreversible damage to himself, but his continued addiction to nicotine is making any recovery of health near impossible. He will never be able to do the things that he was capable of at 25, nor do we expect that. I would be happy if he was able to recover his health to about the point where he was 3 or 4 years ago. That may be a pipe dream. Any progress is going to depend on having a plan and following it consistently. Follow through is the hard part, but it is also vital to breaking a habit or starting a new one.
I guess part of the source of my frustration is the difference in our personalities and attitudes. Randy is a grasshopper and I am an ant. Despite the fact that I was at one time a smoker, I have always been pro-active about my overall health. I have been taking vitamins and herbal supplements since I was a teenager. I have always had an interest in the effects that diet and nutrition has on ones health. I have also always been physically active, although not necessarily in a mainstream way. My attitude has been to stay healthy and independent. Randy on the other hand has always lived for today, for the now. Not thinking about the needs of tomorrow. As long as he enjoyed it, or it felt good today, let tomorrow take care of itself. This has been at times, a problem between us. Good thing he discovered early on that my planning and forethought could make things comfortable on a more consistent basis. However, there are still times that my guidance and advise has fallen on deaf ears.
Three years ago I told him all I wanted for our anniversary was for him to quit smoking. If he had been able to quit at that point he might not be in the situation that he is in now. He has done irreversible damage to himself, but his continued addiction to nicotine is making any recovery of health near impossible. He will never be able to do the things that he was capable of at 25, nor do we expect that. I would be happy if he was able to recover his health to about the point where he was 3 or 4 years ago. That may be a pipe dream. Any progress is going to depend on having a plan and following it consistently. Follow through is the hard part, but it is also vital to breaking a habit or starting a new one.
Saturday, January 5, 2008
Out of the deep freeze
Temperatures have returned to normal after a couple of days of unusually cold weather. Our overnight low on Wednesday nights was 11 degrees. Thursday was as cold and miserable as Wednesday had been and then Thursday night's low was 18 degrees. Any time we get overnight temperatures that dip below about 20 degrees we have problems with frozen pipes. This year was no different. Not only were the pipes frozen so we had no water, but any standing water, such as that in my tea kettle, was frozen. There was even ice in the water of the toilet bowl. It never got warm enough on Thursday for the pipe to be repaired so we were without access to running water for 2 days. Fortunately we could get water from our front yard, where we have a "hydrant" that drains so it doesn't freeze. This way we were able to have water for flushing the toilet. There is a spring a couple of miles from our house and Randy and Jacqueline took containers to there to get water for drinking and cooking with. Jeremy fixed the broken water line while I was at work. I'm very happy to have the water working again so that dishes and laundry can be done. We will have to take steps to prevent a repeat of this situation when we run the water lines to the house. Repairing frozen water lines is a yearly tradition that I'll be more than happy to put an end to.
This has been a rough week for me at work. I'll be glad for things to return to a more normal routine. I anticipate that happening next week when school starts back up. We have been very busy and I know that things will calm down when everybody gets back to their regular schedules of work and school.
Randy seems to be about the same. As long as he takes everything that he is supposed to take and does his deep breathing exercises and his breathing treatments he feels pretty good. Unfortunately, if I'm not here to prompt him he has a tendency to miss key components of the plan. I just don't think his thought process works they way mine does when it comes to schedules and routines. Once before when he was sick and was supposed to be taking an anti-biotic he was forever missing doses. I've given him a schedule of what to take and when to take it, but thats no help if he doesn't use it. I get very frustrated because he is an adult so all of this shouldn't be necessary. I guess he's just one of those people that takes a really long time to develop a habit. Most people will develop a habit after about 28 days. I think he needs twice that, maybe longer.
This has been a rough week for me at work. I'll be glad for things to return to a more normal routine. I anticipate that happening next week when school starts back up. We have been very busy and I know that things will calm down when everybody gets back to their regular schedules of work and school.
Randy seems to be about the same. As long as he takes everything that he is supposed to take and does his deep breathing exercises and his breathing treatments he feels pretty good. Unfortunately, if I'm not here to prompt him he has a tendency to miss key components of the plan. I just don't think his thought process works they way mine does when it comes to schedules and routines. Once before when he was sick and was supposed to be taking an anti-biotic he was forever missing doses. I've given him a schedule of what to take and when to take it, but thats no help if he doesn't use it. I get very frustrated because he is an adult so all of this shouldn't be necessary. I guess he's just one of those people that takes a really long time to develop a habit. Most people will develop a habit after about 28 days. I think he needs twice that, maybe longer.
Wednesday, January 2, 2008
Hopeful in 2008
The last couple of days have been pretty good for us. Randy has been feeling better and his breathing has eased. The challenge right now is to try to get him over this hump and onto the road to recovery, at least as far as he can recover. He is doing deep breathing exercises to try to rid his body of carbon dioxide and he has started to do a few arm curls with 2 lb weights in an effort to try to regain some of his strength. We would like for him to walk, but right now that is still too ambitious. The weather is also a factor at this point. Today's high is forecast to be 34, but we are very doubtful that it will break the freezing mark. Our overnight low last night was 20 and tonights low is forecast to be 13. It has also been very windy here and that makes it all the more miserable.
We are all having a hard time getting warm or staying warm. Each of us is dressed in layers, and we have a good fire going. It is just so cold that it's hard to get the house as warm as we would like it to be, and the heat isn't spread throughout the house the way it would be if we had a central heating system. For this reason it is very comfortable in the living room and kitchen, but the bedrooms are much cooler. To compensate for this we all have plenty of cover on our beds and each bed has some type of electric heating device. Each of the kids has an electric blanket and Randy and I have an electric mattress pad on our bed. Staying warm when in bed is not an issue, but it can be an issue during waking hours. Everyone seems to suffer from cold feet, despite wearing socks and either shoes or slippers. I'm sure this is in part due to cold floors. We intend to put up a skirting around the piers at the outside of our house's frame, similar to the underpinning on a mobile home. This should help a great deal, as it will stop all of that cold air from passing under the floors of the house.
We are all having a hard time getting warm or staying warm. Each of us is dressed in layers, and we have a good fire going. It is just so cold that it's hard to get the house as warm as we would like it to be, and the heat isn't spread throughout the house the way it would be if we had a central heating system. For this reason it is very comfortable in the living room and kitchen, but the bedrooms are much cooler. To compensate for this we all have plenty of cover on our beds and each bed has some type of electric heating device. Each of the kids has an electric blanket and Randy and I have an electric mattress pad on our bed. Staying warm when in bed is not an issue, but it can be an issue during waking hours. Everyone seems to suffer from cold feet, despite wearing socks and either shoes or slippers. I'm sure this is in part due to cold floors. We intend to put up a skirting around the piers at the outside of our house's frame, similar to the underpinning on a mobile home. This should help a great deal, as it will stop all of that cold air from passing under the floors of the house.
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