zinnias and videos

My garden isn't as pretty as it was a month ago. Gone are most of the glads and all of the lilies except a few stray day lilies. My petunias seem to have some disease. I hardly have any geraniums in bloom. What I do have are impatiens (which have overrun anything I put them in), cosmos, cleome and the prettiest, zinnias. All except the variegated were grown from dried flower heads a dear friend gave me.

Below are two videos. The first is of my cousin (once removed) who is an actress. She has had parts in TV and movies but now her commercial career has really taken off. Aside from this shampoo commercial, which I think is funny, she is now the Samsung girl for their wristwatch phone.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zCkck3XVA9I

And last night sitting on my patio, the female hummingbirds are fighting again. They are hellbent in ensuring the other doesn't touch the feeder. Steve took this video last year. Probably the same birds.
 http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=g02zcCexGiA

This is a low key Labor Day weekend. There is a UM game so going any where near town is out. Josh is camping in some field in western Iowa with his buddies. I had given him all of my camping supplies (which I hope will be returned dry). Last night was pouring rain. I had neglected to give him a ground cloth. This tent is not easy to set up in the wind much less in a thunderstorm. Hopefully it will be dry for him today. I went for aa run and a short bike ride today. The humidity is back. Later a friend will visit.

Hay allergy memories

The begonias two months ago. Julie got the begonias and Shanna the vincas. The vincas were planted within a week. The begonias? Well I felt sorry for them and finally planted them today

I gave identical hanging baskets to them at the same time. Within a week, one was dead due to lack of water. The other is holding its own

Allie today

Yesterday I was riding my bike out in the country. A hay truck past by with bits of hay flying off of it inducing watery, itchy eyes for me. I am not allergic to much but hay dust will make me cry. It reminded me of a time when I was 13 going on a hayride as part of a church picnic. I wore a bright turquoise sweatshirt, recently purchased from some bargain bin that in bright green letters said:

PUSSY GALORE

I had no idea  what "Pussy Galore" meant beyond being a character in the recently released Goldfinger. (the guy who played Goldfinger was a dead ringer for my father. Over the years, he was asked for his autograph). Now I am sure these days every 13 year old knows what a pussy is (beyond a cute name for a cat) but no internet, no sex filled TV shows. Also a clueless mother who had no idea what a pussy could mean so she bought the sweatshirt for me without a thought.

But one of the church ladies knew and started lecturing me on inappropriate clothes and shame on me....blah, blah, blah.
The worst part of the experience though, was the hayride itself. I had just discovered make up and applied it with a very heavy hand. No more blonde eyelashes! I went for the "Carnaby Look" ala Twiggy and Jean Shrimpton. Black eyeliner, white lips, coats and coats of mascara. However, there was hay. The eyes started tearing dissolving the eyeliner which dripped  into my eyes causing burning. I tried as long as possible not to rub but I eventually did leading to huge black splotches for eyes. Oh and there were boys there too. Not the look I was going for.

For the past 3 days, we have been watching Allie as her 'school' is closed yet again. Yesterday Naomi and Maya took my place as I agreed to accompany someone to their colonoscopy (I did my bike ride nervously as Steve was not around to rescue me in case of a flat..I never went more than 5 miles from our house, as far as I am willing to walk, but went 20 miles total). Today we were relieved at noon by Julie's mom. Steve hadn't mentioned that I was going to be there too (I ran for an hour before getting there) and I think Julie was nervous that Steve appeared to be watching Allie by himself (he is certainly capable of doing so. He is very good with babies, the younger the better). I did have a nice run due to the temperature and humidity being very low. And I finally planted those begonias I had given almost 2 months ago (no more plant gifts!!!!). I had brought my own trowel. I am surprised they were still alive (very, very, dry). However, the area I planted them had less than an inch of top soil under lots of mulch and underneath that, gravel. Josh's father-in-law helped him plant some bushes 3 months ago. I assumed they would have put more than one bag of topsoil down but no. Those bushes will not survive long. The whole area will need to be done if he wants anything to live.

Also we were supposed to be feeding Allie half an avocado a day, which we did not due to it being a pain to dice it up to suitable pieces and Allie makes quite a mess with it. I guess avocados are the new baby food. I did it today though due to the negative feedback we received.

The end of summer. Sigh.

I am actually 15 here but you can see the eyeliner and white lips

Strange fund raising schemes

La Tomatina: A festival that my niece was at earlier today in  Bunol , Spain in which
thousands of people take to the streets to throw 40 metric tons of tomatoes at each other
As far as I know, no one has suggested that they reroute these tomatoes to Africa like the zillions of Facebook pages that suggest that people stop pouring water on their heads to raise money and send the water some how to Africa

How to get people to donate to charities? Back when I was 'working', a newly arrived in the US colleague asked me about why would she pay people to walk 60 miles to raise money for breast cancer research? She wasn't against giving money for research, she was just questioning why people would have to walk. It was all so strange to her and I could not provide a satisfactory explanation.

She must be  shaking her head wondering why pouring ice water on one's head is a way to raise money for ALS research. Already an ice bucket challenge death has been reported. An 18 year old Scottish man jumped off a cliff into a rock quarry shortly after being doused with ice water. I would think his landing in a rock quarry had more to do with his death yet it is touted as an ice bucket challenge death.

And the ice bucket backlash with photos of gaunt Africans carrying water containers for miles on their heads while we just dump it on our heads. Not that water is hard to come by here. A big storm blew by yesterday dumping lots of water and blowing powerlines down. I drove right after in the aftermath to  pick up a friend from the airport. Pools of standing water everywhere.

The last library day was yesterday with the grandbabies for a while. Next week school resumes though Maya's school still hasn't published a calendar. Oliver has felt he is too old for it so he works on the computer. Maya started to participate in the activities but soon froze up again. About 60% of the participants are Chinese. The story teller last week asked politely for the adults not to talk loudly amongst themselves while she is telling a story but this fell on deaf ears or at least ears that didn't understand English or basic politeness. Maya is often the sole African-American even though there is a large population of African-Americans within walking distance.

Allie's daycare is closed yet again to give more time off for the workers so we've been filling some of the gaps. She is so cute though.

Bad will house hunting

Some photos I took  of Italy. Maybe if I look at them more, I will get more psyched to go.
This is Manarola  in the Cinque Terre region

Florence

Gagliano Aterno where I stayed for almost 6 weeks

Sulmona

In about 6 weeks, we will be on our way to Italy. Where to go? The bottom two photos are in Southern Italy. We will be mostly in Northern Italy. Steve has never been in Florence so we will go there and I never went to Venice.

What has been distracting me is Steve's insistence that we find another house. It will have to be pretty spectacular for me to drop all my plans and move. We went to two open houses yesterday: one not far from the Moose and Squirrel home but closer to the expressway that I want to stay away from. Plus the inside is uglier than what we have now. The owners want to move into our neighborhood. Steve agreed that the house was no good.

The other house was fantastic but very pricey. I agreed to go because it was built by hand by the father of Josh's best friend. He sunk way too much money into it with all his custom this and that. Cherry hardwood floors for instance. He was forced to foreclose on it 5 years ago. Josh at that point was begging us to buy it as it was quite the bargain. But I was battling cancer at the time and not prepared to move. Now it is twice the price as the new owners paid. Still beautiful but far away and out of our price bracket (Steve disagrees). I went there mainly as a voyeur.

Naomi came over last night all panicky because her phone froze and needed to reboot using my computer. I wish I watched what she was doing because the computer was loaded with malware this morning. It took me more than an hour to remove it. So far I think I cleaned most of the mess up but she is just so careless with everything. She has broken so many phones (never her fault she would say) and effed up several computers. She was able to start her phone again but everything is gone and of course she didn't back things up.

Hot and humid today on my least scheduled day. I've got lots of plans for the rest of the week. Today I will chill out in our cool lower level and watch Blue Jasmine.

That Big Bouncy Castle in the Sky

4 of the grandbabies  waiting for the fun to begin

Allie couldn't enjoy the bouncy castles too much but she played with the balls and danced to the music

guests

Maya trying out the throne

Her aunt braided her hair

The Birthday King sitting on his inflatable throne

I gave myself a day to fight this cold. By yesterday afternoon, I felt fine enough for a short bike ride and later resumed our Orange is the New Black Marathon until one am.. Done! The finale was quite satisfying. I felt fine enough for a long run in the heat and humidity this morning and even biked a little. But by the time of Daniels's party, I started feeling tired and started having the full blown symptoms of a cold. Yuck.

Huma lupa licious is delicious

humulus lupulus i.e. hops

Up north in Bellaire, Michigan, there is a craft brewery that I have visited on a couple of Michiganders. Short's even sells a bicycling jersey covered with hops with its title best seller that I considered buying. Cool graphics! But green isn't the best color for jerseys, one needs to stand out from the scenery (yellow and orange are better) and it was sort of pricey.

A warm humid summer afternoon, perfect for nursing a Huma lupa licious (now being distributed Downstate!) on the patio. Even though it was raining back at home, the rain didn't come yet to where I was eating with a friend celebrating his birthday belatedly. Crispy Amish chicken strawberry salad too and the train came lumbering by close to where we were sitting. (less pleasant, a family of tiny mice lived within the branches of a vine close to where I was sitting scampering to and fro throughout the meal).

Earlier in the day, another example of executive functioning gone awry(or non-existent) and screening tests done without any common sense.

For Maya's 4 year check-up, a vision screening test was performed a month ago. She was asked to identify increasingly smaller objects on a page at a distance. Did she know what these objects were? Not really. Three times, she called a 'flag' a star. Now the flag contained a star, one fourth the size of the flag. Does she get credit for having the visual acuity (the alleged point of this test) to identify that?No. Must have follow up with an ophthalmologist. No common sense here. Also she has passed all the screenings at her school several times.

The follow up was to have occurred Tuesday. As I failed to record this and remind Naomi, she missed the appointment (I had wrongly assumed that UM would have reminded her). It was rescheduled for yesterday but I said I had plans and would not go with her. She calls here in a panic (I was out running without a phone) saying she has no money for the meters, what to do? Steve:
You figure it out!!! 
Later as I get out of the shower (carefully budgeting my time), another panicked phone call. Naomi only had so much money harvested in floor mats of her car, the appointment was taking way too long and meter will run out. Please feed her meter. I hurriedly put a sun dress over my dripping body and drive the 4 miles with a handful of quarters. There is 4 minutes on the meter and believe it or not, a metermaid is standing by. Extra fun, it is a blue meter which although it is on a city street, some how f@*@*ing UM owns the meter and its fines are triple that of  city meters. I feed the meter. Nothing is registering. I immediately assume since the meter has a 2 hour limit, it can't be fed beyond that (later I realize that the meter is broken, she hadn't been there 2 hours yet). I call her. No answer (meter still winding down). I text her. No reply. Finally she answers my call but says she can't come out that very moment because she has to hold Maya as they put in the drops to dilate her pupils. With a minute to spare, she runs out holding Maya. She has since learned of the 'free spots' which she should have asked about in the first place or remembered because she was there herself 2 years ago. Meanwhile, the cloud cover hadn't come yet and poor Maya has dilated eyes with a full sun shining. I ask her to keep her eyes closed while Naomi reparks.

So much for my carefully time-budgetted plans. Extra fun: Steve was taking an extra long, extra steamy shower where my make-up is stored upon my return. I slap it on any which way and I am off.

Oh, and at some time late into my lunch (appointment ended up lasting 3.5 hours), I get a call informing me that although they detected a mild farsightedness common to 4 year olds and will be outgrown, she had normal vision.

Quelle surprise!!!!

I am fighting off a cold and will take a rare day off from exercising in the hopes that the cold will go away (though if it stops raining, a slow bike ride shouldn't hurt much...)

This has been the week of anniversaries of marriages that have failed: first Josh's 8 years ago and then Naomi's only 3 years ago.
She was a pretty bride.......

With ex-sister-in-laws (from both sides), ex-cousin-in-law, ex-bestfriend. Only her sister is not an ex.

Trypophobia

Someone with true trypophobia could not stand to look at this photo from my niece of La Sagrada Famiglia ceiling

This lotus I took in the Montreal Botanical Gardens 4 years ago. Once its pretty petals fall off, a seed pod forms in the middle that someone will photograph and then photoshop to someone's skin to evoke nausea

From the Ann Arbor News: an injured snapping turtle was rescued. Before it died, it laid 51 eggs which most of them hatched. Not quite holes but still would make someone with trypophobia queasy

Recently on Facebook, a virus filled photo of a lotus pod photoshopped to skin or a breast appeared on various people's walls. I am sure that none of my friends would post this hideous picture (to see it, google image search lotus pod skin or trypophobia but beware, you will feel nauseous) but some how, peoples' friends' lists can be hijacked (why won't Facebook stop this?). The  repulsive image was burnt into my mind for the rest of the day.

 It turns out that I was not unique. Many people reported the same feeling. Trypophobia is the fear of holes in skin. Some can't look at any pictures of holes such as honeycombs or a strawberry skin. I know I got sick seeing photos of Chinese hornet victims (survivors would have pencil size lesions in their skin). I guess this revulsion leads to the avoidance of people with potentially contagious diseases.

Even 'normal' holes in the skin are treated with disgust. Notice how many pore minimizer products there are out there? I used to spackle foundation over my face until not a pore could be detected. Now I don't because I can't see my pores. I don't think they disappeared but my near vision is shot (along with everyone's over 45 or so) so my skin, except for some wrinkles appears smooth now.

It never did rain here yesterday despite the forecast.  I enjoyed my bicycle ride. Later we watched two of Shanna's kids. I was told I was the 'worst grandma ever' because I insisted that the kids play outside well away from the TV. Now it is very muggy so I am not looking forward to my run. But then, a nice lunch, hopefully outside before the rain, with a friend.

The consequences of being radioactive

A door in Barcelona taken by my niece who has a research project in Madrid but is given plenty of time to travel

Fruit jelly collection in  La Boqueria : my favorite market of all times. I love fruit jellies

About twenty years ago, I was given a few drops of a salty liquid designed to destroy my thyroid by beta rays. I had Graves' Disease, an autoimmune condition that produces antibodies that stimulate the thyroid to overproduce leading to a whole host of annoying conditions, the worst being possible heart failure. I had taken an antithyroid drug for a year, which seemed to work but the 'standard of care' was to see if the condition still existed (sometimes Graves' Disease just resolves on its own) and if it did, the thyroid needed to be destroyed either by surgery or radiation. I don't recall being given a choice but I was nervous destroying a body part. What other damage would be done? There are C cells inside the thyroid that produce calcitonin that probably will be destroyed too. Calcitonin is thought to regulate Ca absorption but people exist happily with very low levels or very high levels. It didn't seem important. How about the parathyroids sitting on top of the thyroid? The hormone they produce also regulates Ca levels. Now this level is important and I have since read that Ca levels should be checked yearly after being treated with radioactive iodine. Has this been suggested to me? No!!!!!!!

Radioactive iodine is effective because mainly the thyroid absorbs it. There was a warning that my salivary glands might absorb some of it too leading to dry mouth but it would be temporary. Also I was to avoid being around small children and pregnant ladies as I would be emitting radiation. But aside from that, I was told that this was absolutely safe! And recently I looked and that's still what patients are told, no worries!

But guess what? Breast tissue also absorbs iodine and now they are finding that the patients that opted for the iodine treatment versus the surgery have a 53% increase in breast cancer (@#$@#!!!!) ten to twenty years later. Having thyroid antibodies in itself is a huge risk factor for breast cancer so I am double screwed. This on top of the many risk factors I already had (genetics, tall, overweight, took estrogens, etc).

Not much I can do about this now but I wish I was given a truly informed consent.

I am waiting for the traffic to clear (ever increasing amounts!) so that I can do my bike ride. The daily thunderstorms predicted for almost every day this week won't happen until this afternoon. Plus today is the only day I don't have something scheduled (until tonight...I haven't forgotten).

Compulsory pooling

Today was library day. Maya seemed to be in a mood

Happy Hour last night: mango margarita. yum.

Tess

Daniel requested lego sets for his birthday. Oliver would assemble each piece and then Daniel would play with them

Daniel stretching while  Oliver works

As it turns out, just because you may own some land, doesn't mean you own what is under it. This has become a local issue because just west of us, in the township my son used to live in and where we had been looking for houses, an oil company believes that there is oil underground and that they have a right to it regardless of what the owners and the rest of the township says. Everyone in the area most likely to have oil (no wells have been drilled yet) have had contracts sent to them to give over their mineral rights in return for some small share of the profit. Some people in various subs have found out that the mineral rights to their land was sold by farmers generations ago and thus they have no say. But the kicker is, even if you refuse to cede over your mineral rights, your oil still can be taken from you  in this weird variation of eminent domain  called 'compulsory pooling'. Actually people have been advised not to sign the contracts given them unless they consult a lawyer to get a better deal. The money given to them potentially through compulsory pooling will be better. Also township officials have been made powerless by an act by the State of Michigan in 2011  to forbid drilling operations lest they become influenced by the ones who elected them. They have to prove that the drilling operation will cause irreparable harm. Pollution by the heavy trucks, gas flares, constant pump noise and decreased property values don't count. The township already lost that battle.

Ah so you may be sitting on a gold mine.Will you move to a Beverly Hills Mansion with a big cement pond ala Jed Clampett? Well even if oil has been found, sleazy oil companies have their ways of accounting such that you will never see much of the profits. As soon as the powers-that-be plug up one loophole, another way to cheat the landowners is found. And what happens if the oil company goes bankrupt? Who fills in all those holes?

This is not fracking, we've been told so presumably the aquifer is safe from these wells. I assume we in the city are safe from these operations. But to me, it just doesn't seem right that a corporation can take what is yours for profit.

So it seems that faulty septic fields and questionable aquifers aren't the only thing to worry about outside the city limits

Days of rain and thunder though a short reprieve this morning good for a run. Should have bicycled yesterday as rain is in the forecast for the next 4-5 days. I took Maya to the library but she refused to participate in the group activities and just sat frozen. I did take her and Tessa to the park later.

Daniel turns five

Here's our little guy 5 years ago. He was about 6 weeks premature. Although he had a strong sucking reflex, his oxygen levels would drop as he tried to feed thus the nasal cannula

Five years later

Daniel's big birthday bash will be this weekend at a bouncy castle place though he is well aware that today is his birthday. We made the long ride to Boston 5 years ago while his mom was in labor. An ultrasound had them readjust his original due date 9-27 to 9-11 due to his size so it appeared he would only be a few weeks early. However when he was born, despite him being the size of a fullterm infant, his lungs struggled to clear all the fluids in his lungs. He spent 8 days in a level 2 nursery in an oxygen tent for the first part. Shanna went home without him.

He obviously recovered from his rocky beginnings.

After a summer of non-stop activities, I finally had the sinking feeling of what next? last Thursday. I spent it watching TV catching up with Last Tango in Halifax. Halifax is the city in Yorkshire where my English ancestor came from so I got to see the area on TV at least. I didn't learn this until after my visit to York 7 years ago.

But soon I found things to occupy me. Shanna and her children spent Friday and part of Saturday with us. The kids all went swimming in Naomi's pool. Although rain prevented my early start to my long bicycle ride, I finally went out in the middle of the day on my newly repaired bicycle. Then house hunting at open houses. I found things wrong with all of them. A visit with Josh's family and then I resumed my watching of Orange is the New Black at a friend's house.

Today was cool enough  for a long run in the country.

Josh hates this photo as Allie looks ghoulish. She is sucking on an ice cube that is inside a cotton bag. It makes her teething gums feel much better. Just try to take this away from her, even to replace the ice cube

More of my cosmos are in bloom though I think my zinnias and cleome are crowding them out.

birthday boy on the tire swing the other day

Pool days

Although it was cool out yesterday, the water was warm

Tess had a life jacket which tended to make her fall backwards 

Allie enjoying feeding herself spaghetti

at the park

We had a day and night with the kids yesterday. We are so lucky that they live near by. A trip to the playground, then the pool, and then a pizza dinner. Tessa fell asleep watching the hummingbirds feed. Biggest problem? Regulating screen time and who had the most time with the beloved iPad.

They are smiling here

Today I picked up my bike. They reported that several of my back spokes were broken and that I must have hit something very hard to have done that to a new bike. I don't recall that. I've been riding my old bike all last week.

Carpal bossing

There is a hard lump at the base of her left thumb

Our over-texter

Yet another danger from texting: carpal bossing which is an irritation of the thumb joint caused by over use. It results in a bony lump. Will it go away if she stops using her left thumb? We shall see.

Ah cool! Time for a long bike ride made less pleasant by an accident on the expressway that runs parallel to my route rerouting the traffic onto my road. I stopped to try to photograph a large flock of turkey vultures. Alas, they are very easily spooked so no photos. Up close they are so ugly with their red bumpy heads but at a distance, they are so graceful soaring. Twenty years ago or so, I rarely saw more than one a year. Now they are all over the place. Plenty of deer road kill for them.

August and thus summer is flying by.

Yesterday, Maya practiced on the balance bike. Still does not have the hang of it. And then a trip to the playground. Later, my Cooking for Wellness. The best dish: a grilled vegetable couscous salad. I am becoming friends with a colon cancer survivor. Haven't seen Hope in a while. Hope she is OK.

Iconoclasts versus iconophiles

Iconophile central (also known as iconolaters and iconodules). The Antiochian Orthodox church reveres its icons

happy mother and daughter

What exactly is an iconoclast? I knew the general meaning, someone who sets themselves apart from general conventions but where did the word come from? But the word evolves from the original schism between the Roman Catholic Church (the West and the Latin sector) and the Orthodox (the East and the Greek sector) concerning the veneration of icons (many other issues were involved too). So no icons per se in the Catholic church, though saints are definitely recognized and revered (especially versus Protestant religions that I am more familiar with. The Islamic faith is the most literally iconoclastic in how they interpret 'thou shall not worship graven images' in that here is absolutely no reproduction of human or animal forms allowed in their places of worship.

Tessa's baptism took place in an Antiochian Orthodox church the other day. It is very akin to the Greek Orthodox Church except the language spoken is Arabic, not Greek. By orthodox, they mean 'original and the right way". It is based on the very early Christian churches and has not changed much versus other forms of Christianity. Most of the congregation is either of Syrian or Lebanese descent with a few Palestinian Americans too. The "Christian Valley of Syria" is home to 1.8 million Christians in Western Syria. This area is where St. Peter  converted the locals to Christianity, the first Christians. This area is obviously in danger from Islamic fundamentalists. The priest asked all to pray for them, even though he says he tries to stay apolitical at baptisms, as the situation is so dire. (fortunately for Ramy's relatives, the terrorism is very localized and not in their area)

The baptism was lengthly and full of rituals Tessa seemed confused as to what was going on but was quite angelic. Some of the rituals included the priests blowing on her hair to save her from Satan along with spitting on the floor (which also deters Satan). Although the prayers were in Arabic and possibly Greek, they would be explained in English to us non-speakers. Tessa was anointed with oil and then immersed nude in the baptismal font.

Right before immersion. Tess is wrapped in a towel and is clinging for dear life to the Godmother. You can see the incense smoke.

Down she goes

And she's out. She was very quiet through. out the ceremony

Shanna was baptized there too but I was not invited to that ceremony. It was very important to Ramy's family that the children be raised in this faith. This all is very foreign to me who sang in a choir in a Presbyterian church and ultimately decided after much pondering the meaning of various Bible stories and whether God was mad at me, I came to the following conclusion:

"You're nothing but a pack of cards!"

(Alice finally decides not to fret over her trial by the Queen of Hearts)
 Alice in Wonderland by  Lewis Carroll

Back to reality, the torrential rains of two days ago caused severe flooding in Detroit such that many expressways are still under water complicating Josh and Julie's commutes, though she was allowed to stay home during the worst of it. Ann Arbor got much less rain though I've been cutting away rotten, water soaked blossoms from my garden. It also was difficult for me to drive in that heavy downpour with me hydroplaning all over the place. Today is cool and beautiful. Perfect for running though kind of windy for bicycling.

Yesterday, I was confined to the ambulatory surgical unit while Steve had his procedure (all is well). I was told I couldn't leave because what would happen if I had an accident? I guess they didn't want to become stuck with Steve. I did learn a potentially useful fact while reading outdated waiting room magazines: a thin coating of oil deters wasps from hummingbird feeders. Well when it's wasp season, we'll see about that.

And later Shanna had a consultation with a color expert on what colors to paint various rooms (my job: keep the kids from being underfoot). This consultant completely contradicted everything I had said. Hmph! Oh well, I guess I really don't have any taste.

And even later: a visit with one of the Mom's grandchild who is a couple of months younger than Allie. What a cutie! And she is a miniature version of my friend's child. Maybe someday I will have a grandchild that actually looks like one of my kids.