What is happening

[Priscilla]

Any further work get done putting unsulation into the upstairs, maw? Are you the only one who sleeps up there? If so, that is very inconsiderate of everyone else to have a warm place and allow you to rough it!

Jeff got a weather station for Christmas. It came with a windspeed and direction gadget that you put on a pole out in the yard. It sends a wireless signal to a box in the kitchen that displays a lot of different information. We went to a lumber store today and got a 10 foot long by 4" square piece of wood that he has mounted it on out by the driveway and away from the house. It seems to be working very well.

I'll let you know what we think of this newspaper brick maker.

[mawra]

It got to cold to work up there. Now that it has warmed up a bit I am going to plan on working on it this coming week.

Kibby's room is up there, but she sleeps on a couch when it gets too hot or cold. She can ignore the cats sleeping on her and running though the house, and all the other night time noises. I can not sleep with that much noise. I do not hear all that up stairs. It is nice and quiet up there. Only two cats are allowed up stairs and they both know better then to bug me at night. They will get thrown out. Not very nicely either.

[Allen]

Originally Posted by Moonlady

4 years of TP, wow.

Thanks Priscilla and Cheryl.

The paper bricks contraption sounds interesting.

http://www.kotulas.com/deals/Product...&Cm_ite=148827

[Priscilla]

Looks just like what I ordered. Oooooo, can use junk mail as well. We get lots. I see a use for stupid political campaign mailers!

[Hans]

Originally Posted by Priscilla

Looks just like what I ordered. Oooooo, can use junk mail as well. We get lots. I see a use for stupid political campaign mailers!

Excuse me, I thought that was the reason you bought the thing

Kind of a real life spam "filter"

[Priscilla]

Two thumbs up to that!

[Moonlady]

Interesting contraption.... looking forward to hearing how it works, Priscilla.

[mawra]

Just for fun I was looking at Dragon Riders of Pern board games on Amazon and found a new game for the low price of only 2,000 dollars. http://www.amazon.com/gp/offer-listi...&condition=new

Just the way I would spend 2,000 dollars. If you scowl down you will see an even better one for a little over 4,000 dollars

[Priscilla]

Hmmmmmm. I don't like playing any board game so not for me, at any price! Who in their right mind would pay that much? I guess the answer is perhaps the "right mind" part of that!

[P'ter]

I'm in my right mind: I'm a lefty.

Just realised that I haven't posted here about my Sunday. I got shot at.

I was travelling on a bus (only passenger) through a housing estate Sunday lunchtime, when there was a bang just behind my left shoulder and the window there became a maze of cracks with a bullet hole in the radiant point.

[Hans]

Peter! Is it such a bad neighbourhood or just a coincidence. Is someone after you? Could it have been an airgun, thus boys shooting at a passing bus for "fun"? Did you report it to the police?

[Priscilla]

Very, very scarey! I won't go into my opinion on guns. I am just very glad you were not hurt! I am also wondering if the police were involved?

On a better note, being a lefty myself, Hoorah for lefties!

[P'ter]

The estate is rather run down but not the worst area of Wolverhampton.

I suspect some young gurrier was just trying out a Christmas present. I happened to be in line of fire. I think from the glass pattern it was an air rifle. The bus had to be withdrawn from service, though the Polish driver did drop me off where I wanted to go before he drove back to the garage.

I suppose the bus company reported it to the police, though I doubt very much that they did anything about it.

[Cheryl]

Let us know how your contraption works out, Cilla. I'm intrigued by the idea but also dubious!

Edited to add:

Wow, I need to relearn to check that the conversation hasn't moved on to a second page since I last checked it.

Peter, I'm glad you weren't hurt! Even if it was just someone being careless with an air riffle, someone could have been hurt.

[Priscilla]

Me too. At least the thing wasn't expensive.

I was going to grill steaks tonight since the weather is mild. However, it is also raining. Spaghetti, meatballs and salad! Hopefully, steak tomorrow.

[mawra]

I now have a heated water bucket for the goat. Now I won't have to give him water every couple of hours and can go out without worrying about Aries having water when it is cold.

[Priscilla]

I bought one of those giant exercise balls at the thrift store for $6, made by the resist-a-ball company. I haven't quite decided what to do with it. Jenn suggested chasing the kittens around the house with it 'a la' Indiana Jones.

[Moonlady]

Glad you were not hurt P'ter.

Have fun Priscilla and post photos.

Staying warm in sunny CA.

[Moonlady]

I just found out today that my mom is no longer able to eat and has two weeks or less left. The boys and I will go see her this weekend. It will be their last visit. As is it will be hard for them but they need the chance to say goodbye. At times, she seizes and goes catatonic. So far it has not lasted more than two minutes but it will go longer as the cancer progresses. I plan to be with her at the end but it may not be possible because it takes me over two hours to get there and I'll need to drop the boys with my friends first. Hopefully, I will have the time to make it out at the end. Thank you everyone.

[Hans]

Yes, Cilla. Photos or it didn't happen

You could order a truckload of beach sand for in your garage, get on your bathing suit, get a parasol and the ball and pretend it is summer?

[AnnMarie]

Originally Posted by Moonlady

I just found out today that my mom is no longer able to eat and has two weeks or less left. The boys and I will go see her this weekend. It will be their last visit. As is it will be hard for them but they need the chance to say goodbye. At times, she seizes and goes catatonic. So far it has not lasted more than two minutes but it will go longer as the cancer progresses. I plan to be with her at the end but it may not be possible because it takes me over two hours to get there and I'll need to drop the boys with my friends first. Hopefully, I will have the time to make it out at the end. Thank you everyone.

{{{{{{{{{{{{{U}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}}
May her passing be gentle.

[Priscilla]

I am so sorry, Moonlady. I hope you are able to be with her. I agree with AnnMarie, a gentle passing.

[mara]

I am so sorry Moonlady. This are very hard times, I know!

[Hans]

I wish you strength Moonlady and your mum a gentle passing.

[mawra]

I am sorry, Moonlady. I do hope you get to be there in the end. Saying good bye will be hard on the boy, not being able to say their good byes will be much harder.

[Kat]

Sorry to hear that Moonlady,may she pass peacefully and with you there to say goodbye.

[Cheryl]

Moonlady, it sounds like her passing is going rougher than my Mom's. I'm sorry for that, and hope they can help make it as easy on her as possible. If you haven't talked to Hospice, you should because they do different things for palliative care than the drs seem to know for standard care (I can't remember now what it was exactly, but they had some helpful things for my mom). Love and peace to you and your boys.


We are struggling with a mysterious neurological malady with my son. It may be a concussion/post-concussion syndrome, or something else. He woke up on Jan 2nd with a horrific headache, which lasted for 9 days before easing up. Now the pain level fluctuates over the day, but it's still always there. Over-the-counter meds do nothing for him and they won't prescribe anything else for his age. At the ER there was an IV med that worked temporarily, but it's only available via IV.

The earliest appointment I could get with a neurologist was Feb 3, meanwhile he has been home from school especially as his sleep schedule is completely out of whack and cognitive tasks make the pain worse. We've just started the process of applying for a home tutor through the school system as we have no clear idea when he might get back to school on a regular basis.

[Priscilla]

Oh dear that is really awful for your son! Does he play any school sports where he might have been injured? Feb. 3 seems like a long ways away when he is in pain. Thinking of you.

[mawra]

I hope they figure it quickly

[Cheryl]

No sports at the moment; flag football ended in November. We do remember him hitting his head as he came up from under a table. A solid blow but not anything you think much of beyond the immediate pain.

[mawra]

The school tested Madison in reading today. She is in the 3rd grade and A ed the test which go up to 8th grade. They really have no idea what her reading level is. The school is bringing in special tests for her. Madison will be working with a teacher for gifted students 1 day a week.

The school thinks Emmi will be the same. The problem with testing Emmi is the fact that she is so very ADHD that concentrating is hard for her. She is only in K but know what all the letters sounds like and is trying to put the letters sounds together to read.

[mara]

I hope they find what is wrong with him very soon, Cheryl.

[Kat]

Good luck Cheryl.

[Moonlady]

Thank you everyone.

Cheryl, she has been on hospice since December and they have been wonderful.
My thoughts are with your son. It may not help but when my migraines came back with a vengeance when the boys were toddlers, they gave me a shot that wiped the migraine away. However, I broke out in hives. It seems I was allergic to the aspirin in it. Even so, the caffeine seem to help. Anyhow, would the hospital tell you what was in that IV. Maybe it will help till you see the specialist. I've been able to stop a migraine in its track with a frozen coffee or tea drink. The caffeine plus the "brain freeze" keeping the parts of the brain (can't think of the name) from constricting has stopped it in its tracks. I feel for your son. I hope they are able to help him find relief quickly.

[Priscilla]

I believe the very first hospice in the US was in my hometown of Branford, CT. Hospice care is truly wonderful, I'm glad your mother is in their good care!

[mawra]

I had not heard about the caffeine thing for migraines. You can get botox shots in the neck every few months to help with them.

I sounds like your son has something worse then migraines, Cheryl.

[AnnMarie]

Botox for migraines is reserved for those that don't respond to anything else... and they dont' always work. Caffeine is a big help, IMO...but finding the cause is more important, because there may be something they can do to permanently stop them. As a mother, watching your child deal with pain SUCKS. Hopefully they can find the cause, and fix the problem, Cheryl.

[P'ter]

My migraines are all food related. Usually to the specific yeasts in specific cheeses; I can't eat Leerdammer for example. The only way to find out is eat it and see.

[Cheryl]

Moonlady, thanks for the ideas.

The IV was torodol, which is related to ibuprofen but only comes in an IV form - therefore not available for home use. We did try Excedrin which contains caffeine, but that had no effect. Also tried Aleve/naproxen sodium, which seemed to help a bit the first time but successive uses had no effect. Right now I'm not giving him anything for pain, as nothing over-the-counter does anything significant and it seemed time to stop throwing more drugs into his system.

Because of his age there is very little he is allowed to have. Once upon a time they would give kids all the same drugs adults take, but now it's only one that have a proven safety record and new drugs don't get tested on kids.

We are not thinking migraine any longer, with how long this is lasting.

I called the neurologist yesterday, to see if we could get an earlier appointment (nope) or at least if I could consult with him via phone (yes!). That was a good thing, as I brought him up to speed on everything and he decided to order an MRI for G. We'll hopefully be able to get that done and the results in before our appointment, which will help move things along faster.

[Allen]

Most doctors will agree with me; while great for body pains, naproxen usually has little or no effect on headaches.

Did you try Excedrin Migraine?