The last week of June

This day has started kind of weird.  I had gone to bed at 9 last night, tired to the bone. (story of my life lately) and was just about to nod off, when the house shook when a loud boom of thunder/lightning appeared out of nowhere.  Woke me up to the extent that I HAD to get up and get online. (another story of my life)  I figured the noise was loud enough that someone would comment on Facebook. And they did.  Jenni told me about the rant/rave website for Clallam County and it's been a source of entertainment for me.  Last night some woman asked if anyone else had heard that explosion and what was it.  She got remarks back like ..... duh, ever heard of thunder and lightning and my favorite:  It was North Korea; we're being bombed.  Ahhh...Facebook.  I do enjoy reading that website, though. People write about bad service in restaurants, Walmart, dangerous intersections, etc.  I'm sure I'll eventually post something too. I've always got one complaint or another.

I've been keeping a sleeping diary (required before my consultation next month) and it reads like a broken record:  to bed at 10, up at 2 to pee, up at 4 to pee, transferred to recliner at 2, 3, or 4 (hip is killing me), back to foam mattress at 6, or sometimes back to firm mattress, up at 7, blah blah blah!

I had heard from a woman who's had a couple hip replacements that your hips don't usually hurt on the outside of your body where you think hips would hurt. They hurt in the groin area down front.  Well, mine (only the left) hurts on the outside and only when I try to lay in bed over two or three hours. Not when I'm up and about.  That isn't to say it doesn't hurt while I'm up. I've had issues with low back/hip pain for well over a decade.  And yes, I'm well aware of the fact that it might disappear if I ate less and moved more. Again...blah blah blah!

Anyhow, I got up this morning around 7 and decided (AGAIN!) that I need to make more of an effort to downsize around here.  I thought I'd start with my bedroom walk-in closet and slowly through the week  attempt to discard various things throughout the house. If you've ever tried to do this, you know just how hard it can be.  After breakfast I was tired so thought I'd take a morning nap before I began my cleaning out project. TWO HOURS LATER I woke up.  I swear there has to be something amiss with my innards.  I don't think it's sleep apnea but I guess everyone who does that study says they don't have it.  We'll see....  I am open to one of those mask machines IF my numbers indicate it. Again, we'll see.  My daughter, was diagnosed with borderline numbers and she tried out the machine. Said no way Jose! She's taking it back.  I have talked to several people who use them, though, and they say they can't along without them.

Back to my downsizing.  I pulled out this large plastic bin full of shoes and decided I was going to wear every shoe at least a few hours to see how my feet felt. If they hurt, they're going to Goodwill. The first pair were black tie ups and they felt okay but the shoestrings had to be retied twice.  I do need a pair of black shoes for funerals 'cause mostly I just have sneakers so they got to go back in the keep box.  Next up was a pair of white nurses shoes. Looked to be in pretty good shape. I guess I bought them when I was doing home health care back in the 2000s.  They got to stay on about 5 minutes and off they came. To Goodwill they go.  Now I'm wearing an old pair of sneakers. Brooks.  They don't look too worn and they feel okay so they're probably going to get to continue to live in the house.  Just counted my sneaker supply and it seems I have half a dozen pairs.  One is like new but everytime I wear them, they hurt for some reason. Hate to see them go as they look kind of pretty but I'm determined to make an effort at this.

I have one pair of flats (Mary Jane type shoes for dressup) and a couple pair of sandals and a couple slip ons. No heels and the only boots I have are snow boots. Still, when I look at my shoe collection, it does seem like I have too many.  I suspect a lot of women have more shoes than they really need.

Tomorrow I'll study all the clothes on hangers and in bins. That's a job in itself. And a hard one --  especially when you're fat but know you're gonna' lose that weight soon! ha ha  I opened up this small trunk near my bed and did manage to throw out a few lace curtains and some doileys.  I rehung green sheers in the bedroom and white sheers in the bathroom so that brightened up the room more.  I also moved my chair and exerise pedaler near the window to I could look out on nature when I'm exerising my knee. Yeah, I know. Who am I kidding? But my intentions are good and I may change my lazy ways.

My kitchen corner looks like a hobby shop right now.  Besides my laptop and printer and paper supplies, I have a jigsaw puzzle set up, various rocks in the process of being painted, several crossword puzzle books (I work while eating), a box of frames I keep thinking I need to make stick and rock pictures with, my wire supplies for making jewelry, and two see-thru bins full of "stuff" like electronics, etc.  What a mess. But it keeps me happy.

The dandelions are about 9" high now. They're the only thing that grows out there. Sue is coming by tomorrow to mow them down. If the weather cooperates.  Yesterday I attempted to frame my latest counted cross stitch sampler.  It's lame.  Gotta save up so I can go to the frame store and have both of them framed professionally. Just costs so much.  But mine are lopsided and what's the sense in spending all those hours on it if I'm not going to be able to display them?

I'm working on one using red thread only now. Little bo peep and her sheep. I'm going to alter it a bit and only let her have two lambs and a schoolhouse and tree in the background.  My next ones are going to be smaller in size. Might try making some eye glass cases or cellphone holders.  Something I don't have to frame.

Barb Shaw just called to tell me she's dropping in in an hour so I guess I'll make up some lemonade.  Sammy is coming tomorrow while Jenni has a Bremerton doctor appt.
I'm in the process of reading my brother, Dana's latest book -- Cravenstone 2: Time Whisperers.  He writes under the name of Dage Corvish.  Hard to explain what it's about but it's a page turner. Sci fi, sex trafficing, big foot, mental telepathy, end of the world, etc.

Am into Survivorman on Amazon Prime now. 7 seasons. Wooo Hooo!

Well, gotta get up and shut the sliding glass door. All of a sudden, it got too cold in here.  Favorite cartoon in the paper today.....