KateP's musings

Last night I heard the answering machine beeping.  I checked it and it was some law firm talking about a “law suit”.  The number they gave me I looked up and it was one of those IRS scam numbers.  I called the number on the ID and knew it was a scam and they wanted my name.  I told them I would contact the law if they call me again.  This is about the third or 4 th time I have gotten these calls. So my question is what is the point of having the FEDERAL “Do not call list”? When these kinds of scams continue?  I got a couple of the “Fireman’s and Policeman’s Association” calls last month and I had just put my numbers on the lists. I did get a message from Livia she was able to arrange her schedule for today to come and clean the house after 12:30. I was grateful.  I left her money and access to the house.  She won’t have to make my bed since I changed the sheets last night.  I didn’t do the guest room yet but it wouldn’t surprise me ...

I get so frustrated (like many others) when I am trying to merge into traffic and it seems no one is willing to let you in.  Do you want to know how many times I called people Little Fuckers?  It’s like if I did that I would get epitaphs that would make a sailor blush.  I really didn’t need this as school was starting (no problems with that today the rest of the week not so sure) and this week is a short week for me. I messed Livia up today.  I really wasn’t sure if she was coming today or tomorrow so I sent her a text message before leaving the house asking her plans.  When I didn’t hear from her before I left I presumed it was tomorrow.  I locked up the house.  I heard from her just before 9 this morning telling me she was coming today.   We tried to make arrangements for another day this week she can’t.  She also said she comes on Mondays every other week.   So she will look at her schedule and see. Work went well despi...

This afternoon I have quite a bit to do.  First is my bingo then I am meeting with my realtor Niece to begin the process of the condo search.  Then after that is the MYWC board meeting and ice cream social.  You would think I was really looking forward to all of it.  I am not. I ended up vomiting this morning from something I had for dinner last night.  It was very spicy and it apparently didn’t sit well with my stomach.  I am surprised it didn’t start last night but it didn’t happen until this morning as I was feeding the kitties.  All I want to do this morning is sleep.  I am not sure drinking coffee is going to be helpful. So about last night?  I was a tad late but waiting for the table was going to be a half hour if we wanted to go out on the patio.  So we waited and talked about everything.  It was pretty good but I still would get annoyed with him for things he either didn’t hear me or wasn’t listening.  We did ...

I feel much better than I did yesterday when I wrote about being overwhelmed.   I managed to get a lot done including getting stuff at Staples and Pet store.   I managed to put on my big girl pants and get the things I have been avoiding doing.   I went to bed fairly late last night but I still was able to go to sleep even with the extra cup of coffee.   Sky came up on the bed for a bit but not in his usual spot.   He has had had a fascination with my feet.   I have the scratches to prove it. The kitties spent a good part of the evening down in the cellar but I was able to get them up and keep them up for the night when I refilled their kibble.   They managed to keep themselves occupied until bed time.   I am anxious to see if they will like the new canned cat food I got.   It’s the Fancy Feast medley (in sauces).   They always seem to leave some behind in the dish but I can never tell if they liked it or not.   They left th...

I am starting to feel a little overwhelmed today.  I haven’t finished any of my blog entries since Tuesday.  I have been tired at night.  I am hoping while I am doing some chores tonight I will get it done. I haven’t empty the dishwasher completely and the laundry is starting to build up again.  Again I am either too tired or I didn’t want to do it when I should.  This weekend is a tad busy for me.  I have my rescheduled hair appointment from last week, I am going to dinner with Dave for my birthday.  It is still up in the air about getting together with Cheryl and Liz about the condo search. Work has been keeping me busy.  I helped out at a union activity today at noon.  I was helping pass out Literature for the Union to incoming students and their families.  I was on Chapel street at the lovely shop that Siduri and I went to during our Saturday trip to the city.  As soon as I finished passing the literature out I headed bac...

Earlier this week I said farewell to Roberta as she returned home after her two week visit with me and the rest of her friends.   She made an overnight stop to her sisters in Somers NY and on Monday headed back.   She made it home sometime before 7:30.   We would amazed how quickly the two weeks went by.   I know I was exhausted every night and went to bed late every night too.   Roberta may be coming back up in a couple of months. As you may all remember I mentioned that we are beginning the process of looking to downsize to condo living.   I had heard from my niece who is a real estate agent and she is still putting together a binder for me to better understand and help me decide on the condos.   The biggest obstacle is finding a place that will accept two pets.   Even if I outright buy the condo I would have to abide by the association rules and regulations.   You wouldn’t believe the suggestions to ignore that do what I want with t...

For the first time in a long time I had to put a sweat shirt on last night.  It was very breezy and as the sun was setting and I was trying to ward off another headache it got much cooler.  Of course I kept the fans on and that probably made it worse.  The headache eventually went away but I still feel that I have a pillow or strong allergy to the mattress.  There is a cover still on it but the sheets are so stretched out they have pulled off from it.  I have always gotten a headache when I sleep on mattresses without the sheets.  I may have to get new pillows again.  Or more bed linens. I have been thinking about what Cheryl said about perhaps renovating the house where I can stay here with the cats.  It was something Liz had mentioned once before to me.   If memory serves me Liz had once suggested that we make the dining room my bedroom (as we did for Mom’s final days).  We probably would put up a few extended walls wher...

I was able to go back to bed a little longer than usual today.  IT is something I can’t do often.  I am afraid I will over sleep and be late for work.  I could tell I was having a headache so I wanted to see if it would go away it didn’t and hasn’t so far.  I am hoping the Tylenol I took will kick in soon. It is a beautiful morning so far.  A nice cool breeze and cloudy but it will be in the 80’s today and for the next few days.  I think that the rain we got over night helped it immensely.  Let’s hope the humidity stays away for now. I was feeling guilty for bailing on the crew at the Oyster festival but I see an email that Phil sent out and it looks like there was a lot of people that showed up to help on both days.  So whatever guilt I was feeling before not so much now. It looks like there is going to be an all class reunion coming up for the JA Foran HS.  I heard about it on the FB page.  Some people want to do it like the...

This week has been so busy and even though I started this particular entry last week I never had a chance to get back to it nor have I had a chance to write this week. Today is the Oyster fest I signed up for volunteering at but I am bailing because I am tired and I really have things to do.  So much has gone on this week that I don’t know where to begin. Last week at this time Roberta and I were enjoying our Saturday morning.  That afternoon we went looking for a new refrigerator we tried three different places and finally went to Lowes and looked at one.  We decided to think about it and talk with Liz about it and by the middle of the week I got a new one.  It looks very pretty and very organized and according to Roberta “empty”.  After that we did some grocery shopping for things that Roberta wanted to bring home with her as they don’t have these Items down in her area.  Such as MY-T Fine pudding mix or bieles, and a couple of sauces they li...

There was an awesome natural light show last night in the western skies.  We had been watching TV and while watching we got the hazardous weather alert for different counties and we could hear the thunder and see the lightening.  It was sometimes big flashes and then bolts in every direction.  It didn’t alleviate the humidity though. My session with Debra had to be cut really short.  I ended up getting sick so I came home.  We will meet again next week.  I did manage to tell her about work, family, and activities.  So actually we did manage to get a lot done in short amount of time. When I got home I rushed into get a shower and then got ready for grocery shopping at Shop-rite.  We got a lot of stuff and some stuff clearly I didn’t need.  Roberta was very impressed with the store. I don’t know what time it was when we got home but we had dinner of sandwiches and salad.  We watched TV for the rest of the night. This past week I no...

Today is the 4 th anniversary of my brother Bob’s passing.   He had been moving furniture around at his home with his wife and he sat down to review a blog he moderated (unbeknownst to the rest of us) at the time and suffered a massive heart attack.   He never made it to the hospital.   I haven’t seen anything on FB from his kids or my SIL but they made not feel they need to.   This last few days I have had my friend Roberta visiting from NC.   While I have been working she has been running some errands, visiting friends, doing some shopping.   We are getting together to have a Mexican train this weekend.   The beginning of the week she will be traveling up to Somers NY to visit family overnight.    Then as the week draws to a close she will stay with some friends in the next town while my brother comes up for the annual Oyster festival next weekend.   Then she will be leaving the following Monday for home. I had a Dr. Appoint...

1.            I am thankful for my family warts and all. 2.            I am thankful for my kitties 3.            I am thankful for my job 4.            I am thankful for the Medical profession that keeps me on the road to good health 5.            I am thankful for my neighbors 6.            I am thankful for my home 7.            I am thankful for my friends 8.            I am thankful for the organizations I belong to. 9             I am thankful for the weather. 10. ...

Mama Roberta arrived a day early safely but a frazzled because of the traffic jams she was caught in multiple times.  She arrived here between 10 and 11.  We sat and relaxed and talked for nearly an hour. While I waited for her I did a few things such as downstairs bathroom cleaning, some laundry, watched TV. Tonight we are having dinner with friends of Mama’s in Trumbull.  These are women she has worked with for 20 years and they get together monthly for dinner (well used to before they moved to NC).  So she invited me to go along.  I am not sure where we are going but it should be fun.  I may have to get more money. Tomorrow we are getting together with Dr. T for a short while before she leaves for FL on Thursday.  Man do we have a lot to catch up on.  I guess she is packing the house and taking stuff down there.  Actually it isn’t a guess, she actually told me that is what she is doing. Work is going well.  I worked on a big pi...

Another Monday and another week has arrived and it is a beautiful one at that.  It is supposed to be lovely all day today.  It’s in the low to mid 70’s right now but getting up to the mid 80’s later. My day started off well.  I got up fed the kitties and put a few things away and really still have a few more things to do.  The kitties missed the Box again and I have no idea which one.  I have to vacuum the bathroom again anyway to pick up the tossed litter. To be honest I was fighting a headache and my ankle ache since last night.  I took the Tylenol and by lunch time it was gone.  There were a couple of times I could feel it coming back…I found myself grinding my teeth for no obvious reason but the not so obvious reason someone was getting on my nerves. A part of me is also anxious because Mama should be here in less then 24 hours.  One part of me is feeling the house is fine and should be acceptable at receiving guests.  The other h...

It was early Sunday morning when I put some laundry in the wash as it is one day close to Roberta’s arrival.  I still had much to do in the form of vacuuming, dusting and making sure things look okay.  She is not usually worried but I sure as hell don’t want the repeat performance of our visit to her friend in Bear Creek. I slept downstairs last night and it was okay except for the shoulder pain and the slight headache I woke up with. Both eventually went away until late this afternoon.  I managed to stay in bed until 6:30.  Of course the kitties objected as they usually do.  They got fed and watered and I had my coffee and continued to wake up. I had every intention of getting to Lowes today but decided that getting the laundry done and a few other things before leaving for bingo was more important.  When I got back from Bingo I cleaned the bathroom floor. The few other things included trying to empty out my inbox on the computer and making su...

This morning my sister came early to look over the books and check a few things and it was nearly lunchtime before she left.  We also looked at some clothing sites as well like Jessica London’s and Women in Wear and the Blair catalog as well.  We were looking to see if there anymore sheets around in the house for the spare room but there aren’t any.  Lots of pillow cases though.  We found some stuff Mom kept in the cedar chest which included perfume, my father’s flag that was over his casket when he died.  We also found an interesting letter from my late brother Bob to my Mother while he was in Indiana University I have decided that I am holding on to it to give to my niece or her brothers.  I have contacted her and she would like it.  She has been here in the state while her hubby is abroad working.  I am hoping we get together tomorrow around 6 at night. This afternoon I did some laundry and the rest of the time I sat in a room with a...

Today was one of those days in which I didn’t want to move fast.  I stayed in bed way past the alarms (both the cell and my four-legged system).   After I fed the cats and put some towels in the wash I sat down and watched TV until about 6:30.  It was after 7 when I got out of the shower and got ready.  I couldn’t find my pocketbook or cell (found both a short time later and finished dressing).  I left the house by 7:30. I hit traffic in the usual place but managed to get to the office just before 8. The morning I spent opening mail and a little on refund checks both insurance and personal.  In the afternoon I spent most of the afternoon working on the refunds as well.  Of course my weekly cleaning up. I talked with Roberta last night for 30m.  We talked about her upcoming trip and we have a special Mexican Train game scheduled a week from tomorrow.  At first it was going to be here at the house but I got a text with location chan...

1.            I am thankful for my family warts and all. 2.            I am thankful for my kitties 3.            I am thankful for my job 4.            I am thankful for the Medical profession that keeps me on the road to good health 5.            I am thankful for my neighbors 6.            I am thankful for my home 7.            I am thankful for my friends 8.            I am thankful for the organizations I belong to. 9             I am thankful for the weather. 10. ...

Had a lovely visit from my brother last weekend.  He came in on Saturday and we went to our local festival near my home and then spent part of the afternoon sleeping and watching movies until he went out for dinner.  On Sunday he went to a morning meeting and we met up with my sister at Café Atlantique for coffee and chatted for like two hours until he left for home. Took a look at condo yesterday.  As my sister says it really didn’t “bite me”. It was in Milford close to town and just over a half mile from my sister.   It was all one floor, had an attached garage but it just didn’t grab me.  The realtor will keep an eye out for more for me.  It isn’t anything definite it was just an idea. Work is going okay.  We are getting used to not having work with NEMG and there is a considerable difference in volume this week.  I just finished up the Data Entry Insurance refund dates I was working with.  Now I am working on “readdress mail”. ...

  It turned out to be another beautiful day around here.   I wasn’t out in it long enough to enjoy it but from what I could see from any window I went to it looked great.   It turned out to be a beautiful drive home (despite the normal Monday afternoon commute traffic) I was relieved I didn’t have to water the grass this morning as we had a good soaking overnight and it looked like it was not drying out yet.   I started to do it this evening but I was getting impatient with the sprinkler either going to high or not enough.   I do find it annoying whoever did the lawn today really should have unraveled the hose and put it back.   It looks like I don’t have to feel too bad about the sprinkler thing because we are supposed to get some rain tonight. Work seemed busy but I did notice there wasn’t too much or very little of the NEMG stuff.   Luckily I was working a lot on the Insurance Refund Data entry.   Unfortunately near the end of the day ...

Today would have been my father’s 90 th birthday.  That’s to say if he didn’t have the health problems he had 25 years ago.  Today three of his children got together for coffee at Café Atlantique.  Each of us have very different memories and views of Dad. Of course by the time he died he was a recovering alcoholic and even then he may be viewed as not the greatest.   The relationship between my two older siblings is tenuous at best and I had mixed feeling and apprehensions about this.  I wanted it to go well.  It did very well.  We talked about family history and who took care of who and it didn’t break into arguments.  Although some of it made me a little uncomfortable because I was reminded that things had not been so good even before I came into the world. Jim headed home after the coffee date and Liz and I went our ways.  I had cat food and litter to get and a short time to get it.  I still had bingo to go to and some st...