Small Talk: The Prayer Closet

[lookeyloo]

14 hours ago, Love2dance said:

Southern California gal here. We are getting ash from the Big Bear mountain fire. We were supposed to get a bunch of rain, but so far only sprinkles. 🥲 But at least it’s finally a little cooler.

Granddaughter is at SDSU and after growing up in PNW is loving it, regardless of issues.  There is also smoke in PNW where her family lives. 

[oliviabenson]

Off Jinger making tater tot casserole.

Thats how I started cooking when I was little. Tuna helper, tuna casserole, chicken casserole. Maybe I made tater tot casserole I don’t remember. I do remember making my first cheesecake and how proud I was! It was pretty delicious too.

I hope my mom liked my culinary  creations. Well she ate them so I guess they were okay.

Very useful to learn how to cook even unhealthy food like tuna casserole lol. 
 

[Porkchop]

The first time I made creamed tuna, we had to slice it. Nothing creamy about it!

[Minivanessa]

Hi Small Talk friends. I've been binge-watching all the news feeds I can find from the UK since learning of the medical alert about HM the Queen on Thursday.

But not just sitting and staring at screens. I accomplished an overdue housekeeping project as well. I tackled the dirty and cluttered enclosed balcony (aka lanai) here at my condo. There are windows on the two exposed sides, but they are single pane, not weatherproof, and certainly not made to keep out dust, lol. It took a few days, but the lanai is clean, and excess stuff has been disposed of (some was trash, much was taken in two loads as donations to a charity shop).

As part of the project, my condo's moderate sized storage closet (located in the storage room down the hall) was mostly cleared out. AND - ta da! - I emptied out an offsite storage unit, brought the stuff here, got it properly stashed or donated, and closed out that account. I rented that unit nine months ago. Don't regret it, but the rent had gone up. Now that I've had time to deal with all my excess stuff, I'm glad to close it out and save the $$$. 

In the aftermath, there are some big plastic storage bins, now empty, stacked in my living room. I'll have to put them away somewhere but for the moment I don't mind the sight of them. They are evidence of how much stuff I've removed from my keeping. And motivation to tackle my home office next. 

But not today. This is a day of rest. Several days ago I bought a ticket for a live Zoom "virtual walk" hosted by London Walks, which will take place a noon (my time) today. How appropriate that after these days of watching news coverage from London and other places in the UK, I'll be enjoying a virtual stroll in London although I doubt we'll "walk" by Buckingham Palace. I've heard that the crowds are so huge they are controlling access. Wow.

I was all too briefly in Glasgow and Edinburgh a few years ago. I hadn't expected to like Scotland and to my surprise I enjoyed those cities very much and I want to return. (Sounds like @Scarlett45!) On my final day in Edinburgh I went to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, because I very much wanted to visit the ruins of Holyrood Abbey which are next to the Palace. I found that one has to go through the Palace to get to the Abbey. I did a rather rushed self-guided tour of the Palace. It's old and somehow seemed more authentic to me than grander places I've been. Not huge rooms with super-lofty ceilings. I was rather impatient as I went through it, but oddly it made a lasting impression, as I later realized. I'm glad I saw it as I can imagine HM's coffin arriving there. It's the sovereign's official residence in Scotland.

Events and history overlap and collide, don't they? It's September 11 today. Twenty-one years now that's been a significant date. 

[ozziemom]

Ozziedad and I are flying to London on September 21 to visit our daughter so we will just miss the Queen’s funeral etc. We haven’t been able to go over since 2019 so we are looking forward to the trip. Our daughter has been here in the states a few times, she has both a US and UK passport so it’s easier for her to travel. @Jeeves that virtual walking tour sounds interesting!

[sagittarius sue]

6 hours ago, Jeeves said:

On my final day in Edinburgh I went to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, because I very much wanted to visit the ruins of Holyrood Abbey which are next to the Palace.

I wasn't able to visit Holyroodhouse when I was in Edinburgh because then Prince Charles was in residence a few days, but I enjoyed my visit of Edinburgh Castle.  One can either do a self-guided tour or with a guide.  It's nice one could join a guided tour midstream as I did when I heard a guide with a wonderful Low Country accent.  There's no accent I like better than a Scots one!  I also enjoyed visiting a whisky museum, with free samples of course.

[Westiepeach]

Husband and I are back to masking up when we go out again. I have noticed a lot more people are masked when we go to stores. We have had WAAAAYYY too many people in our orbit test positive for COVID. The high school down the street from us had their marching band and cheerleaders taken down with COVID. (Not that they are in our orbit, per se, but a little too close for comfort.) As well as other people we know. We are both vaxxed and double boosted, but we are not taking any chances. This is far from over.

[Notabug]

7 hours ago, Jeeves said:

I was all too briefly in Glasgow and Edinburgh a few years ago. I hadn't expected to like Scotland and to my surprise I enjoyed those cities very much and I want to return. (Sounds like @Scarlett45!) On my final day in Edinburgh I went to the Palace of Holyroodhouse, because I very much wanted to visit the ruins of Holyrood Abbey which are next to the Palace. I found that one has to go through the Palace to get to the Abbey. I did a rather rushed self-guided tour of the Palace. It's old and somehow seemed more authentic to me than grander places I've been. Not huge rooms with super-lofty ceilings. I was rather impatient as I went through it, but oddly it made a lasting impression, as I later realized. I'm glad I saw it as I can imagine HM's coffin arriving there. It's the sovereign's official residence in Scotland.

Events and history overlap and collide, don't they? It's September 11 today. Twenty-one years now that's been a significant date. 

I've been glued to the coverage since Thursday, too.  Keep getting up at 4AM to see what's happening across the pond.  I can endorse London Walks as a great way to tour London in person; I haven't done a virtual walk with them, but now I'll have to give it a try.  The first tour of I did was their 'Jack the Ripper' tour.  A friend of a friend had been a guide with London Walks for years and gave us a personal JTR guided tour one evening after a couple of bottles of wine.  

I've also been to Edinburgh, a really beautiful city.  I did the tour of Holyrood to get to the Abbey, too.  It must be a thing.  The ruins of the Abbey are breathtaking and Holyrood House is a very down to earth kind of castle.  Not extravagant, it's actually kind of homey.  I did a guided tour of Holyrood House and enjoyed the history.  Edinburgh is kind of hilly and the streets are cobblestone/brick, but it is a great walking city, always something happening.

Edited September 11, 2022 by Notabug

[lookeyloo]

38 minutes ago, Westiepeach said:

Husband and I are back to masking up when we go out again. I have noticed a lot more people are masked when we go to stores. We have had WAAAAYYY too many people in our orbit test positive for COVID. The high school down the street from us had their marching band and cheerleaders taken down with COVID. (Not that they are in our orbit, per se, but a little too close for comfort.) As well as other people we know. We are both vaxxed and double boosted, but we are not taking any chances. This is far from over.

We have not stopped masking in any place with a lot of people. Also surprising is how many people here still are. Also vaxxed and boosted. I may never stop masking. No colds. No viruses etc. 

[Cinnabon]

1 hour ago, Westiepeach said:

Husband and I are back to masking up when we go out again. I have noticed a lot more people are masked when we go to stores. We have had WAAAAYYY too many people in our orbit test positive for COVID. The high school down the street from us had their marching band and cheerleaders taken down with COVID. (Not that they are in our orbit, per se, but a little too close for comfort.) As well as other people we know. We are both vaxxed and double boosted, but we are not taking any chances. This is far from over.

You’re right, it is nowhere near over. I am heartbroken and disgusted that even some medical facilities seem not to care about keeping the immunocompromised and other extremely high risk patients safe. More people here are masking, too. This winter is predicted to be a bad flu season in addition to Covid still spreading more as things move indoors. Stay safe!

[Scarlett45]

18 hours ago, Notabug said:

The first tour of I did was their 'Jack the Ripper' tour.  A friend of a friend had been a guide with London Walks for years and gave us a personal JTR guided tour one evening after a couple of bottles of wine.  

I've also been to Edinburgh, a really beautiful city.  I did the tour of Holyrood to get to the Abbey, too.  It must be a thing.  The ruins of the Abbey are breathtaking and Holyrood House is a very down to earth kind of castle.  Not extravagant, it's actually kind of homey.  I did a guided tour of Holyrood House and enjoyed the history.

I did a Jack the Ripper tour in 2012 when I went for the Diamond Jubilee. 
 

Holyrood did feel homey. I remember walking up the stairwell to wear David Rizzio was murdered (2019 trip), and I thought “dang this stairwell is SMALL”. 

[CalicoKitty]

Our temp is down to the mid 70's, which is wonderful, but the AQI is up to 205 where I live, and 255 in Carson City.  It is very hazy and overcast with smoke.  It seems like it should be about 7:00 in the evening, not 1:30.  Not a day to open the windows!  I heard the Mosquito fire is 10% contained, which I guess is a start, but I will be so happy when the air is clear again.  Luckily I don't have anywhere I need to go, so I can stay inside with the windows shut.  It is a good time to catch up on some new books.  I am reading "If Walls Could Talk: An Intimate History of the Home" by Lucy Worsley.  I just received her new book about Agatha Christie which I will read next.  I would like to be able to go outside and do some shopping, however. 

Everyone who is close to the fires, or dealing with smoke, stay safe!!

[sagittarius sue]

1 hour ago, CalicoKitty said:

Our temp is down to the mid 70's, which is wonderful, but the AQI is up to 205 where I live, and 255 in Carson City.  It is very hazy and overcast with smoke.  It seems like it should be about 7:00 in the evening, not 1:30.  Not a day to open the windows!  I heard the Mosquito fire is 10% contained, which I guess is a start, but I will be so happy when the air is clear again.  Luckily I don't have anywhere I need to go, so I can stay inside with the windows shut.  It is a good time to catch up on some new books.  I am reading "If Walls Could Talk: An Intimate History of the Home" by Lucy Worsley.  I just received her new book about Agatha Christie which I will read next.  I would like to be able to go outside and do some shopping, however. 

Everyone who is close to the fires, or dealing with smoke, stay safe!!

Thank you for the mention of the Worsley books.  I think I'd probably enjoy them as much as I do her TV shows.  Your situation reminds me of what people in my state do during a heavy snowfall or frigid temps.  Last week we even had hazy weather a couple days due to the western fires.  It's not often we have fire effects from halfway across the nation!  Stay safe!

[Scarlett45]

2 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

Our temp is down to the mid 70's, which is wonderful, but the AQI is up to 205 where I live, and 255 in Carson City.  It is very hazy and overcast with smoke.  It seems like it should be about 7:00 in the evening, not 1:30.  Not a day to open the windows!  I heard the Mosquito fire is 10% contained, which I guess is a start, but I will be so happy when the air is clear again.  Luckily I don't have anywhere I need to go, so I can stay inside with the windows shut.  It is a good time to catch up on some new books.  I am reading "If Walls Could Talk: An Intimate History of the Home" by Lucy Worsley.  I just received her new book about Agatha Christie which I will read next.  I would like to be able to go outside and do some shopping, however. 

Everyone who is close to the fires, or dealing with smoke, stay safe!!

I love Lucy Worsley. Do you ever watch her documentaries on YouTube? She did 12 Days of Tudor Christmas in 2019 (it aired on PBS) and it was a delight!

[CalicoKitty]

22 minutes ago, Scarlett45 said:

I love Lucy Worsley. Do you ever watch her documentaries on YouTube? She did 12 Days of Tudor Christmas in 2019 (it aired on PBS) and it was a delight!

I think I have watched all of her documentaries.  I find her very interesting, and she does a very good job with her presentations.  I just watched one about the princes who disappeared from the Tower.  Her office is at Hampton Court, and they have shown a lot of "behind the scenes" areas that are now used as offices. This is the first book I have read by her.  She writes just like she speaks.  I'm anxious to start her Agatha Christie book, but I am really enjoying this  one that I am reading.

[ChristmasCrafter]

4 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

This is the first book I have read by her.  She writes just like she speaks.  I'm anxious to start her Agatha Christie book, but I am really enjoying this  one that I am reading.

You will really enjoy the book. I read it one sitting as I couldn't put it down.

[Minivanessa]

Hi Small Talkers. I just want to burble a bit about what a PLEASANT time I just had at an appointment in the dermatology department of my HMO. The nurse, the doctor - just so pleasant and courteous and relaxed. And efficient. I had a cyst on the top of my head removed. Nicely numbed, no pain. I'm home again, just took a couple of Tylenol because I could be a little sore when the numbing wears off. He had to push around on my head a bit because the cyst was ruptured and he was fishing out little bits of the cyst wall. That cyst has been an annoyance for a few months and I'm glad it's gone.

BTW that's the sore that the other doc referred me to dermatology for a couple of months ago. He thought it might be something malignant, but the dermatologist said it's a cyst and we scheduled this excision for today. The tissues he removed are going to pathology as a matter of routine, which is fine with me. I will see the nice dermatology folks next week to have the sutures out. 

I think I got back home from my appointment just in time. There are lots of dark clouds moving in and a few drops of rain were splatting down when I pulled into the garage here. I think a frisky little cold front is moving through, maybe we'll get a thunder and lightning show. 

[BetyBee]

@Jeeves - I'm so glad your procedure went so well.

I had book club yesterday (All the Little Hopes by Leah Weiss - Excellent book!) and learned that another woman in my group has lost her husband. That's two in a not very big group. It's so sad and makes me want to wrap my hubby in bubble wrap to keep him around as long as possible! Afterwards we had a meeting with our financial advisor and our investments just kind of sat there and didn't do much this year. We live modestly and we're fine, but I worry about the future. Too much worry & concern for a beautiful late summer day!

My oldest and I drove to WI to get all the grandkids together last weekend. It was so fun! Our grandkids range from 14 to 3 and they are all amazing!

I hope all Small Talkers have a wonderful day. 

[zoomama]

hello friends, just watched a tutorial about scrappy quilting. it was actually pretty interesting. i didn't join the guild because i cant see me doing it more than once or twice -- the style is not really me, although there is room for expression in it.  i did, however, order and receive this 'quilt builder card deck'  ---essentially like a recipe card box with each card being a quilt block with all the details on size and fabric needed to make 'endless possibilities' of patterns of quilts. i was curious and had seen it advertised on my phone and so i went to amazon to get it. it looks like it will be helpful to me if i really get into this quilting stuff. i can assure you tho -- no more tie quilts!!!!  

on another note, i found a new author that i am enjoying. she writes christian fiction (some amish, some not). i just finished my first series of hers and liked it so much i ordered more. her name is Suzanne Woods Fisher.  if you enjoy decent stories without the heavy 'preaching' but with good values, and interesting storylines, you might enjoy her writing. 

finally, i was at Sprouts shopping and found a new grape! has anyone ever tried these oval (?) shaped seedless, dark colored grapes called moon drop (formerly know as witches fingers per my friend)?  they are so different tasting and unexpected but good. we tried the cotton candy grapes too -- very sweet. 

well, thats all i have today.  hope ya'll are well. 

[Absolom]

Moon drop grapes are fantastic.

[lookeyloo]

35 minutes ago, zoomama said:

hello friends, just watched a tutorial about scrappy quilting. it was actually pretty interesting. i didn't join the guild because i cant see me doing it more than once or twice -- the style is not really me, although there is room for expression in it.  i did, however, order and receive this 'quilt builder card deck'  ---essentially like a recipe card box with each card being a quilt block with all the details on size and fabric needed to make 'endless possibilities' of patterns of quilts. i was curious and had seen it advertised on my phone and so i went to amazon to get it. it looks like it will be helpful to me if i really get into this quilting stuff. i can assure you tho -- no more tie quilts!!!!  

on another note, i found a new author that i am enjoying. she writes christian fiction (some amish, some not). i just finished my first series of hers and liked it so much i ordered more. her name is Suzanne Woods Fisher.  if you enjoy decent stories without the heavy 'preaching' but with good values, and interesting storylines, you might enjoy her writing. 

finally, i was at Sprouts shopping and found a new grape! has anyone ever tried these oval (?) shaped seedless, dark colored grapes called moon drop (formerly know as witches fingers per my friend)?  they are so different tasting and unexpected but good. we tried the cotton candy grapes too -- very sweet. 

well, thats all i have today.  hope ya'll are well. 

Sounds interesting.  I'm a quilter and there is something for everyone.  I tried a lot of things before I settled mostly on what I like to do. And a pattern in one set of colors can look completely different in another set.  

[BetyBee]

36 minutes ago, zoomama said:

hello friends, just watched a tutorial about scrappy quilting. it was actually pretty interesting. i didn't join the guild because i cant see me doing it more than once or twice -- the style is not really me, although there is room for expression in it.  i did, however, order and receive this 'quilt builder card deck'  ---essentially like a recipe card box with each card being a quilt block with all the details on size and fabric needed to make 'endless possibilities' of patterns of quilts. i was curious and had seen it advertised on my phone and so i went to amazon to get it. it looks like it will be helpful to me if i really get into this quilting stuff. i can assure you tho -- no more tie quilts!!!!  

@zoomama - Please show us a finished product of your scrappy quilting! I'm watching a video right now!

[zoomama]

10 minutes ago, BetyBee said:

@zoomama - Please show us a finished product of your scrappy quilting! I'm watching a video right now!

i haven't done one yet, just the tie quilt. its at the quilter now. all i have done is a couple of small lap size quilts. 

[Nysha]

I have new glasses just for the computer and I love them! I have tried for 5 years to adjust to bifocals/trifocals and it's just so frustrating. I decided to get computer glasses and wear my trifocals for distant viewing. I also got a copy of both prescriptions so I can buy cheap online glasses if I want.

[peppergal]

13 hours ago, Nysha said:

I have new glasses just for the computer and I love them! I have tried for 5 years to adjust to bifocals/trifocals and it's just so frustrating. I decided to get computer glasses and wear my trifocals for distant viewing. I also got a copy of both prescriptions so I can buy cheap online glasses if I want.

I did the same thing last year.  I was having to hold my head awkwardly in order to use the right parts of the glasses for the screen so I went for every day progressives and stand alone computer glasses.  I also love that they talked me into the blue light filter for the computer glasses.  Things are a bit yellow, but I have less eye strain. 

My only issue is that because I now see so well at the computer, I sometimes forget to change back and wander off in just my computer glasses and then have an issue when I need to see something more than 3 ft away.

[Jynnan tonnix]

Does anyone have any experience with this issue? I'm pretty sure it is about worked out, but am still nervous about last minute problems.

I am off for a visit to my cousins in England next week (had I only known what a tumult the country was going to be in ahead if time, I'd have picked a later date, but that's not the issue). For some reason, I had a brain glitch when booking the plane tickets, and didn't include my middle name, which is on my passport. I only managed to start worrying about it a few days later, by which time it was too late to cancel and do it over. I called British Airways (that my flight is on), and they advised me to call Expedia, which I booked my flight through. Expedia was pretty helpful, and took all my information to have on hand, but said they couldn't do anything until 72 hours before the flight, and to call them again then (that will be late Sunday as I have an overnight flight). So I've spent the last couple of weeks in low-grade panic, hoping that it all gets sorted out smoothly. I suppose their phone lines are probably open 24/7, as flights go on at all hours of day and night. Just venting, really, but even comparatively local flying always makes me a nervous wreck because I always think I will have screwed something up, forgotten something vital, etc...

Has anyone else had to deal with this sort of thing?

[Ariadne1637]

My company travel doesn't have my middle name and I successfully fly all the time.

Probably good to call in advance if you're worried, but I've been to Canada, Switzerland, and the UK with no issues.

[sagittarius sue]

I remember once I had a flight problem.  It was back in the 80s when I booked through a travel agent, paper tickets etc.  My itinerary showed one date which is the day I wanted, the actual ticket a day later,  Things were easier then, more empty seata, so I was able to fly the day I wanted.

[Jynnan tonnix]

3 minutes ago, sagittarius sue said:

I remember once I had a flight problem.  It was back in the 80s when I booked through a travel agent, paper tickets etc.  My itinerary showed one date which is the day I wanted, the actual ticket a day later,  Things were easier then, more empty seata, so I was able to fly the day I wanted.

Part of what made me nervous was that when I went to visit my son in South Carolina earlier this year, I got to talking in the interminable TSA line with the woman in front of me. We were chatting about both being really nervous every time we fly that something was going to go wrong - not with the plane, but with whether all the i's had been dotted and t's crossed, that sort of thing. And when she got to the desk, it turned out that her date of birth was a day off on something (I don't recall ever seeing a DOB on a ticket, but it must have been in the info somewhere?) vs her ID. So they made her go all the way back to the check-in, and I have no idea whether she ever made her flight. 

I've been googling whether I need to have a middle name on my ticket if it's on my passport, and it doesn't appear that it should matter, but a couple of places I've seen that it does need to be in my identification in the travel agency records or something which I didn't quite understand. I think I will call them again in the morning even though it won't quite be up to the 72 hours pre-flight, and see if I can get some more answers. Somehow they seemed a bit more confused by the situation when I talked to them last than they should have been - I was on hold for a good 15-20 minutes while they checked with a supervisor as to what needed to be done, and I don't understand why it should have been something so out of the ordinary. Surely it should be easy enough to fix...

[sagittarius sue]

On the local news tonight the well-known epidemiologist Michael Osterholm advosed one might want to hold off a bit on getting flu shots.  The protection it gives will lose 18% of its efficiency per month so if one got it now you'd lose 70% by the flu-ridden months of January and February.  I think I"ll wait until early November.

[Cinnabon]

2 minutes ago, sagittarius sue said:

On the local news tonight the well-known epidemiologist Michael Osterholm advosed one might want to hold off a bit on getting flu shots.  The protection it gives will lose 18% of its efficiency per month so if one got it now you'd lose 70% by the flu-ridden months of January and February.  I think I"ll wait until early November.

I always wait until October for this reason. 

[Notabug]

8 hours ago, Jynnan tonnix said:

Does anyone have any experience with this issue? I'm pretty sure it is about worked out, but am still nervous about last minute problems.

I am off for a visit to my cousins in England next week (had I only known what a tumult the country was going to be in ahead if time, I'd have picked a later date, but that's not the issue). For some reason, I had a brain glitch when booking the plane tickets, and didn't include my middle name, which is on my passport. I only managed to start worrying about it a few days later, by which time it was too late to cancel and do it over. I called British Airways (that my flight is on), and they advised me to call Expedia, which I booked my flight through. Expedia was pretty helpful, and took all my information to have on hand, but said they couldn't do anything until 72 hours before the flight, and to call them again then (that will be late Sunday as I have an overnight flight). So I've spent the last couple of weeks in low-grade panic, hoping that it all gets sorted out smoothly. I suppose their phone lines are probably open 24/7, as flights go on at all hours of day and night. Just venting, really, but even comparatively local flying always makes me a nervous wreck because I always think I will have screwed something up, forgotten something vital, etc...

Has anyone else had to deal with this sort of thing?

I just visited England and flew on to Germany in June.  My passport has my full name including middle while my tickets didn't.  No problem whatsoever, lots of other stupidity like cancelled and delayed flights, lost luggage and such; my name was not an issue.

It can be a problem if your name is misspelled somewhere along the line or you use a nickname to book a flight and your passport has your given name.  About 20 years ago, I went to Chicago with my dad.  I bought the tickets and used his first name on the reservation.  My dad, however, never used his first name since he was named after an uncle.  He was called by his middle name since birth.  When we got to TSA, my dad pulled out his driver's license and it had him as Mr. Middle Name without a mention of his first name.  It hadn't occurred to me that he might've changed his driver's license to reflect his preferred name, but he had at some point.  Luckily, he had an insurance card in his wallet with both names on it and they let it go. It probably helped he was in his 70's and used a cane. When he died a few years later, we used his middle name in the notice with his given first name in the fine print of the obit.  Multiple people asked about it at the wake; they had no idea that his legal first name wasn't the name he used.  My father did find it a convenient way to sort out nuisance calls from salespeople; if someone asked for him by his birth name, he knew they were trying to sell something.

Edited September 16, 2022 by Notabug

[Zella]

46 minutes ago, sagittarius sue said:

On the local news tonight the well-known epidemiologist Michael Osterholm advosed one might want to hold off a bit on getting flu shots.  The protection it gives will lose 18% of its efficiency per month so if one got it now you'd lose 70% by the flu-ridden months of January and February.  I think I"ll wait until early November.

Early November is always when I get my flu shot because of this issue. 

[Minivanessa]

10 minutes ago, Zella said:

Early November is always when I get my flu shot because of this issue. 

That's interesting. My HMO has announced that they are offering a "stronger" (enhanced?) flu shot to patients aged 65+. I asked the dermatology nurse about that when I was in there the other day. She said I can ask for that when I go in for the vaccination.

The HMO starts offering free flu shots for members on a walk-in basis on October 1. I usually go as soon after that as I can, but now I'll reconsider. I will be traveling and socializing more than usual in early November, so I want to be immunized by then. I believe the general rule is that it takes a couple of weeks after the shot for the immunization to develop. Maybe mid or late October for the shot . . . hmm.

[Zella]

12 minutes ago, Jeeves said:

That's interesting. My HMO has announced that they are offering a "stronger" (enhanced?) flu shot to patients aged 65+. I asked the dermatology nurse about that when I was in there the other day. She said I can ask for that when I go in for the vaccination.

The HMO starts offering free flu shots for members on a walk-in basis on October 1. I usually go as soon after that as I can, but now I'll reconsider. I will be traveling and socializing more than usual in early November, so I want to be immunized by then. I believe the general rule is that it takes a couple of weeks after the shot for the immunization to develop. Maybe mid or late October for the shot . . . hmm.

Yeah I'm obviously no medical professional, but I read somewhere several years ago that between Halloween and Thanksgiving is a good time to get it to ensure it lasts through the flu season, but I can definitely understand wanting to be sure it is at peak functioning when you're out and about. 

[jcbrown]

1 hour ago, sagittarius sue said:

On the local news tonight the well-known epidemiologist Michael Osterholm advosed one might want to hold off a bit on getting flu shots.  The protection it gives will lose 18% of its efficiency per month so if one got it now you'd lose 70% by the flu-ridden months of January and February.  I think I"ll wait until early November.

I read just this week that the flu season is supposed to be bad this year and is also projected to start early. We're getting our shots plus bivalent COVID boosters the last week in September, to ensure we're fully vaxxed before we travel in mid-October.

[Zella]

Speaking of the bivalent boosters, has anyone had one yet? I am scheduled to get my Moderna one next week but was wondering if it had the same arm pain side effects as the last ones. (I had pretty significant arm pain from the Moderna regular shots and the first booster.) It's fine if it does, but I was just curious if I needed to plan around it for a couple of times. I asked my pharmacist, but she admitted they'd literally gotten them the day before I scheduled, so it was too early for her to have really heard back from people. 

[Scarlett45]

On 9/15/2022 at 3:41 PM, zoomama said:

finally, i was at Sprouts shopping and found a new grape! has anyone ever tried these oval (?) shaped seedless, dark colored grapes called moon drop (formerly know as witches fingers per my friend)?  they are so different tasting and unexpected but good. we tried the cotton candy grapes too -- very sweet. 

I like moon drop grapes. 😃

[Love2dance]

5 hours ago, Zella said:

Speaking of the bivalent boosters, has anyone had one yet? I am scheduled to get my Moderna one next week but was wondering if it had the same arm pain side effects as the last ones. (I had pretty significant arm pain from the Moderna regular shots and the first booster.) It's fine if it does, but I was just curious if I needed to plan around it for a couple of times. I asked my pharmacist, but she admitted they'd literally gotten them the day before I scheduled, so it was too early for her to have really heard back from people. 

We got the new booster almost two weeks ago. (They just came out.) We got the Moderna shot (all of ours have been Moderna). We found the side effects to be the same, but milder than the other inoculations. Our arms were very sore, but manageable with Tylenol taken a few hours AFTER the booster. We also got tired afterword, lasting several hours into the next day. By mid afternoon we felt normal.
Another relative who had terrible side effects from all four previous Pfizer shots (chills, fever, aches, exhaustion) had NO side effects from this Moderna booster.) Who knows why.

Good luck with your booster!

[thehorseofpower]

9 hours ago, Zella said:

Speaking of the bivalent boosters, has anyone had one yet? I am scheduled to get my Moderna one next week but was wondering if it had the same arm pain side effects as the last ones. (I had pretty significant arm pain from the Moderna regular shots and the first booster.) It's fine if it does, but I was just curious if I needed to plan around it for a couple of times. I asked my pharmacist, but she admitted they'd literally gotten them the day before I scheduled, so it was too early for her to have really heard back from people. 

I got my booster two days ago on Thursday. Mine was Pfizer, though. I've had mild arm pain and yesterday had all over body aches and exhaustion, and some chills. That "just got hit by a truck" feeling was pretty bad and I should have taken the day off yesterday (and I was working from home on the computer, so I have to be pretty sick feeling to not be able to work at all). I didn't feel this bad with the original booster I got last fall. I just got up and am drinking my coffee, so hard to tell yet if I'm swinging back to feeling normal again.

My husband got the Moderna one a few days before mine and had bad arm pain - said he felt like he got hit by a fastball. He didn't get the body aches and exhaustion like I did, but said the arm pain was similar to the other Moderna shots.

Hope it goes well for you with minimal side effects. I had to go into the office a few times this week, and on one day I ended up stuck in a meeting room with someone who was coughing and unmasked and saying "I don't THINK I have Covid." I was livid and made my appointment for the booster the next day. So glad to have updated protection when there are so many thoughtless people I'm unfortunately forced to be around again.

[Zella]

Thanks so much to both of you! I'll have to report in with my own experiences next week!! But this is making me think it's not a bad idea to at least expect the possibility of some discomfort and plan accordingly.

Edited September 17, 2022 by Zella

[oliviabenson]

Jenelle from sister wives went to a plexus trip to Hawaii. Our plexus pusher Jill Rodrigues didn’t earn that. Haha. Bet Jill is jealous of anyone who is above her on the pyramid scam. 

[CalicoKitty]

I'm watching the Iowa/Nevada football game tonight and flipping occasionally to the Giants baseball game (they are behind right now).  I have never watched a football game where they have to evacuate the stadium for thunder.  I watch a lot of Iowa games, and this is a first.  There is a rule that if lightning is within 8 miles, there must be a stadium evacuation for at least 30 minutes after the last lightning strike.  They finally resumed play after the first delay, and now they had to leave again.  The stadium is packed, and all the spectators must leave, too.  I don't know the college football rule for calling the game, but the announcers are saying they will keep trying and it will be a long night.  It is pouring rain, but the lightning is the problem.  I live in Nevada, but Iowa is my team.  My parents met at UI, and my mother graduated from there (my dad was taking  advanced chemistry classes there--he graduated from Upper Iowa in Fayette).  I don't watch much NFL football, but I do enjoy college games.  I have never seen stadium evacuations, though.

My favorite thing about University of Iowa home games happens at the end of the first quarter.  The stadium is right next to the Children's Hospital, and the home games stop at the end of the first quarter, all the players come onto the field, and everyone faces the hospital and waves at the kids as they watch through the windows.  Fans turn their phone flashlights on and wave, and the TV shows the kids in the windows waving.  It is really a nice tradition.  After a few minutes, the game resumes.  (It will be at least 30 minutes before it resumes right now.)

[Salacious Kitty]

I forget the reason why now, but ESPN really highlighted the Iowa Children's Hospital tradition a few years back. Maybe someone was raising money for the hospital? At any rate, they got great national exposure. 

[CalicoKitty]

4 minutes ago, Salacious Kitty said:

I forget the reason why now, but ESPN really highlighted the Iowa Children's Hospital tradition a few years back. Maybe someone was raising money for the hospital? At any rate, they got great national exposure. 

They show it every televised Iowa home game.  I think it is a very nice gesture to the kids.  I'm guessing the kids get a great view of the game.

[Salacious Kitty]

12 minutes ago, CalicoKitty said:

They show it every televised Iowa home game.  I think it is a very nice gesture to the kids.  I'm guessing the kids get a great view of the game.

ESPN has had cameras showing the view from the hospital. It's spectacular.

eta Just found the Iowa game on the B1G network. Hopefully they're back on the field soon. It's almost 11 in Iowa now. 

Edited September 18, 2022 by Salacious Kitty

[EVS]

12 hours ago, CalicoKitty said:

They show it every televised Iowa home game.  I think it is a very nice gesture to the kids.  I'm guessing the kids get a great view of the game.

I have an Iowa grad although he didn’t play football. IIRC, they built the new hospital with a big activities room for viewing games. It has a huge window or windows that overlook the field and they have special things for the kids on game days.
 

I think the whole thing was started by some students on social media. It got a lot of media attention at one point.  It really is a moving experience to participate in the waving. It is wonderful to see opposing players and fans participate also. One time I remember reading in the news that Iowa did not have a game that week so 2 other teams who had a televised game waved at the Iowa kids at the end of the first quarter instead.

Edited September 18, 2022 by EVS
Clarity

[ChristmasCandy]

A funny story I was visiting Great Gram at the nursing home and they had a fundie church group give the sermon. She yelled at the nursing home director and said couldn't you get the Rods or the Smuggar family at least they are infamous 😂

[CalicoKitty]

The Iowa/Nevada game finally ended last night at 11:30 PDT, so 1:30 in Iowa.  I stuck with it, but I was beginning to wonder if they would just call it off.  There were still fans in the stands at the bitter end.  Over 7 hours for a football game.  That has to be some kind of record.  Big 10 network stuck with them the whole time, but I'm sure the network hopes this doesn't happen again.

[ChristmasCandy]

GGram is such a pistol and her mouth has no filter. In fact she looked up Rods address and sent a invitation to preach and sing at the nursing home because they are the worst singers she ever heard and that her cat screeching is a million times better.