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Below are the 20 most recent journal entries recorded in
Rubert's Blurty:
| Monday, May 6th, 2013 | |
| 10:43 am | Dust to dust B's dad died on May 1st. It's okay because he was 89 years old and it was kind of a cool way to go. He was out working in his yard with the weed-eater, got tired and went up on his porch to sit for a bit, and just passed away. B's mom found him sitting in his chair, weed-eater by his side, and she thought he'd fallen asleep. She tells everybody that he literally "died with his boots on". Kind of a bummer that I wasn't well enough to go to his funeral service. It was a bit of a jolt for me though. I really have a problem with having enough energy to do more than bare essentials and a minimum of chores from day to day. A good thing is that I've been reading more (going through the Brother Cadfael series right now). However, I've also been watching way more TV than ever before. The jolt was a realization that I'm not dead yet! Why am I withdrawing so much from things I enjoy? Of course, I rarely get out. But I haven't been in touch on the computer much, either. Nothing except to order groceries and kitty supplies. No blurty, no Tumblr, no Facebook. I haven't been doing any photography or posting any pictures anywhere. My intention is to spend more time not stuck to the boob tube. Let's see how that goes. And my apologies to family and friends. Truly, I'm not intentionally ignoring anyone. I've pretty much been ignoring everyone. Current Mood:  determinedCurrent Music: dishwasher |
| Tuesday, March 12th, 2013 | |
| 8:27 pm | Curious about Catholic Conclave My cable provider has a Catholic channel, so I figured that would be a great place to find out what's up with the Pope elections so far! Hmmm. I'm not sure they know. There are many live telecasts of a room full of cardinals doing things. Right now I think they're all lining up to take communion. Earlier they were singing or chanting together. Not sure if they ever even speak to one another about possible choices. There have been some speeches but were they general or candidate-specific? I don't know. I understand that voting will begin soon and there will keep being more voting until someone somehow ends up with a majority of votes. That's when the white smoke comes out of the official Pope chimney and sometime after, the new Pope shows himself at the official Pope balcony. Not really a lot of info there about the actual conclave and the choosing of such an important and powerful leader. Current Mood:  curious |
| Wednesday, March 6th, 2013 | |
| 1:19 pm | Not my idea of spring So, groundhogs, you call this early spring? I guess the legend never specifically calls for a warm spring. Right now it is nothing but gray outdoors. The sky, the trees, the road, everything gray. And cold. The wind is really blowing, howling through the trees constantly which makes it even colder. Got 2 space heaters running in the living room. I'm the only one here, so the thermostat is set low for the rest of the house to save a couple of bucks on utilities. Strangely enough, the two cats seem to like sitting around where I'm sitting. Wonder if it has anything to do with the fact that I've got the warm air pointed at me? Current Mood:  mellow |
| Saturday, February 2nd, 2013 | |
| 11:51 am | Looks like spring . . . A most merry Whistlepig day to one and all! Here are various regional results as they come in: No shadow - early spring Punxsutawney Phil - PA Buckeye Chuck - OH Staten Island Chuck - NY Dunkirk Dave - NY Woody - MI Jimmy the Groundhog - WI Wiarton Willie - Ontario Shadow - 6 more weeks of winter General Beauregard Lee - GA Sir Walter Wally - NC Shubenacadie Sam - Novia Scotia So far, spring is the the thing for 2013. Current Mood:  surprised |
| Saturday, January 26th, 2013 | |
| 12:35 am | I know I like winter weather, but . . . Today, at noon, it was 27 degrees and cloudy outside. Since then we've had sleet, freezing rain, and arctic air blowing through leaving us with patchy ice, sheet ice, icicles, and cold misery. The worst part was that I had to go out into it because I was caught off guard and had not pre-stocked the pantry. It near 'bout froze my fingers right off while I lugged groceries from the car to the house. BRRR! That's all in the past now and I somehow made it through alive and intact. Beefy hot Campbell's soup probably saved my life. And now it is absolutely and very eerily silent outdoors. No one is driving about and no one is on the highways. All traffic cams are showing empty streets. Creepy, but also shiny and crystalline. I'm gonna have one last cuppa hot tea and finish the book I'm reading, then off to blanket-town. Current Mood:  lethargic |
| Sunday, January 6th, 2013 | |
| 3:32 am | Gifts Remember the Rubik's Cube-type puzzles? B happens to be good at that sort of thing so for Christmas I got him a 12-sided puzzle! Crazy. When it's messed up, the riot of colors . . . it looks totally impossible to get them all separated again. He finally solved it last night! So that's . . . 11 days! Took only 11 days to solve an impossible puzzle. Yikes. I, on the other hand, got a bunch of edible gifts which is fine with me! I'm still working on finishing things up. I now know that I like Chocolate truffles. By the way, don't ever believe that giving money is a lame, impersonal gift. My mom sent me some Christmas cash in a card and I wasn't offended at all! Also was not offended with the Barnes & Noble gift card I got from a friend. Just gotta wait for a day I feel strong enough to take a trip to the bookstore. Browsing uses a lot of energy! Current Mood:  sleepy |
| Wednesday, January 2nd, 2013 | |
| 7:41 pm | Better living . . . chemistry CT scan last week to see if tumor in my guts was shrinking or spreading or whatever else tumors do when no one is watching. Crummy news today from my doctor. With my present treatment, I am not getting better. Bummer! Way back, when I'd just had my operation, I had been receiving a chemo mix that really disagreed with my system. I was unable to leave the house because that's where my bathrooms are. And when I say leave the house, I mean even the yard was too far! That is the chemo session we are going to try again because it is so darn strong. Of course, back then, like I said, I'd also just had a big operation so I'm unclear how much of the reaction was chemical and how much was cumulative system shock. But because it is a really strong and harsh mix, the doctor is starting me out on half as much as before. To make a long and rambling story short, we have no idea what will happen next. Lest I be fearful, my doctor assured me that, whatever happens, he will make sure that I am always going to be able to get as much pain medication as I need. I know that was supposed to make me feel secure but, y'know, it was kind of terrifying, too. Current Mood:  pensiveCurrent Music: Cat chorus yelling the Hungry song |
| Tuesday, January 1st, 2013 | |
| 12:06 am | 2013 . . . a very good year! Happy New Year ever'body! Hmmm, don't have any resolutions worked out yet. I guess it's too late to resolve against procrastination. Yeesh. Current Mood:  awake |
| Tuesday, December 18th, 2012 | |
| 12:19 pm | . . . No way I can update everybody about everything that's been going on so I'll stick with the present and fill in the past if I need to. * For now, I am receiving chemo again . . . but this chemo combo is a bit less harsh. * I am taking pain-killers for a pain I have - there's a small (size of my thumb) tumor that I can feel, just to the right of my bellybutton, that hurts for some reason - 'cause it's growing or 'cause it's shrinking or just 'cause - so I take oxycontin every 12 hours for constant pain control AND the good ol' oxycodone for if a twinge of hurt breaks through. * I had another radiation session which did not kick off my diarrhea too badly (yay for small miracles!) So, for now, I'm still kicking around but I don't get out too much. I've gotten my Christmas shopping all done, via internet, which I would have done even if at the peak of health. No way am I diving into the Christmas shopping madness! Puddin' and Boo are really doing a good job of keeping me company. If you call being yelled at company! Not been taking that many photos. Unless National Geographic wants to put out their Big Book of Squirrels, I don't have too much of interest to shoot. One new thing I've started is a thing called Postcrossing. They have a site online (Postcrossing.com) where you register and promise to mail out some postcards. Then they send you up to 5 addresses to start off. Everytime someone gets one of your postcards they register it and you become eligible to receive another address. And you get cards in the mail! It's been nice getting postcards from Russia and Germany, a few from the US and a couple from China, from people of all ages. It's not like penpals because it's a one-time thing to each address and, postcards being so small, you don't really have to write very much. Just a friendly greeting or I like to mention the weather and maybe one fact about where the card is from. So there ya go. And the weather today was sunny but it is clouding up. Not Christmasy weather at all. Temps in the 60s. Terrible. Current Mood: mellowCurrent Music: Yelling cats |
| Friday, October 5th, 2012 | |
| 7:09 pm | Out of touch . . . *poof* Been time-travelling in my DeLorean. Did I miss anything? Guess I'll have a nap. Current Mood:  lazy |
| Friday, August 3rd, 2012 | |
| 4:11 pm | Things slowly getting done Must be hot out there. Looked out the back door and there was a titmouse stretched out on the deck. Both wings were stretched out completely, with all feathers separated. It was belly-flat on the deck. I thought it'd hit a window and died. All it's body feathers were ruffled up so it looked pretty sad . . . until it saw me and flew off just fine! I've never seen a bird lying out like that. Wish I'd gotten a picture. D has moved to a place a little closer to her job. She's got a private room and bathroom in a newly divorced lady's house. Kitchen and living room are there to use if she wants. D specifically wanted to share a place with someone 'cause she's uncomfortable living alone. Anyway, nice neighborhood with swimming pool, gym privileges. Not sure what to do with the extra room here. Gathered up some energy this past weekend and packed up 4 boxes of stuff to go to the thrift store. I wonder if I could get any money from it all if I put stuff on EBay? Just seems like a lot of trouble for minuscule rewards. Most of it was a bunch of books that the used bookstore wouldn't buy, some old khaki pants, and knickknacks that transformed into clutter. My next "project" is to clean out my walk-in closet/storm closet. Current Mood:  accomplishedCurrent Music: TV show on PBS that wants to teach me to paint |
| Wednesday, July 18th, 2012 | |
| 5:22 pm | Back to the used bookstore Watched the movie Capote last night. Philip Seymour Hoffman did a great job being Truman Capote. I read In Cold Blood when I was in high school or jr. high. I just remember that I liked it a lot and reread it right away. Knowing the background of the book development from the movie mostly makes me want to read In Cold Blood again! It was like a 2 hr. infomercial for the book. Hopefully the used bookstore has it. Might like to find the book that the movie is based on, too. Current Mood: curious |
| Friday, July 13th, 2012 | |
| 4:36 pm | Movie nite Gathered some energy and made it to my favorite used book store. Sold boxes of stuff (yay! $40!) and picked up a few DVDs. Finally got around to watching the movie, Albert Nobbs. It was a sad, small little movie but I was fascinated with Glenn Close. It might have been better if Nobbs had been played by someone less famous. She mostly looked like a "plain" version of herself, but now and then she actually looked like a little Irish bloke. The overall message seemed to be that women, in the end, can only really rely on each other. Also got Glen or Glenda? to watch for the first time. It's by Ed Wood, of Plan 9 From Outer Space fame. Ed Wood himself liked to wear women's clothing and wanted to create a way to explain what that was all about to a 1950s audience. Ummm, Glen/Glenda is what I'd call a cross between a soft-core performance art piece and a 50s Army hygiene filmstrip, complete with charts . . . and with appearances by an elderly Bela Lugosi, being menacing, and a guy who might have been a red devil. Groan. Not even enjoyably bad. Current Mood: accomplished |
| Wednesday, July 4th, 2012 | |
| 11:26 pm | Birthday girl Called my mom to wish her a happy July 4th birthday. Just about one year ago she was in a nursing home recovering from her surgery to put a stent in an artery somewhere. After she went through physical therapy and escaped back into independence, she fell and had to take it easy again. She felt kind of vulnerable during that time and a bit blue. After she was "all better" I haven't called her much so I was a little concerned. Kind of a relief that she sounded well and spritely. Made me feel better. I've gotta admit that I feel guilty that I couldn't be there for her when she was down. I haven't seen her now for 2 years! Yeesh! Current Mood: okay |
| 4:05 pm | Rain, rain, hip hooray After days of 103 plus temps with over 70% humidity (can you say sauna?), we are having a rip-roaring summertime storm complete with 4th of July thunder and lightning! Oh yeah, feels so clean and refreshing. Current Mood: refreshed |
| Tuesday, July 3rd, 2012 | |
| 4:42 pm | Feel like I knew him all my life Goodbye, Sheriff Andy. Current Mood: contemplative |
| Friday, June 22nd, 2012 | |
| 10:01 pm | Nature is winning Since moving to this house, I've been sort of the unofficial yard tamer around here. Needless to say, I ain't been out that much this year. I think it's starting to show a little.  Current Mood: guilty |
| Sunday, June 17th, 2012 | |
| 2:10 am | Secret Garden? I put a letter into the mailbox for the postal worker to pick up. Went out later to check the mail, looked down, and became confused. "Hey, where did these tomatoes come from?"  But, no, they were mushrooms that had popped up within hours!  They didn't stay long. I think squirrels gnawed them down. I guess they weren't poisonous . . . for rodents. Current Mood: surprised |
| Friday, June 8th, 2012 | |
| 7:49 pm | :-\ Hello all! Gathering my brain cells together and trying to get them to work. . . at the same time. Chemo makes me tired and oxycodone makes me scatterbrained. But I'm not dead yet! No, really. Get me out of this cart! (Besides, gotta get something for Puddin's upcoming big b'day. Cats don't tolerate excuses.) Current Mood: determined |
| Thursday, April 19th, 2012 | |
| 6:26 pm | Not a Luddite! Always steps behind in technology acquisition . . . while all are racing to buy iPads, I have only now gotten a laptop computer! Got a nifty 15" iBook. Very liberating! This little sucker has more memory/is faster than my big, ol' desktop model. Have been, as the British say, knackered (really exhausted). Back to chemo sessions every other week because of crummy new tumor. Good news, though. After 5 sessions, tumor is shrinking! I'm talking centimeters or millimeters BUT measurements are smaller in all 3 dimensions. Newest pastime on computer = Pottermore. It's kind of for kids but I'm into it! Terrible drawback is that it's so new that all the levels are not readily available! I tore through the activities associated with the first Harry Potter book only to discover that the Chamber of Secrets level won't be available until this fall. Arg! I've been selected by a (virtual) wand and sorted by the Sorting Hat (completely surprised!) and now I must pass the time perfecting my potion-making and spell-casting skills, and also trying to make points for my House. I can't believe it. It's like I have homework! Will update meager book list soon. Will put up more photos soon. Current Mood: optimisticCurrent Music: evening news on TV |