Wednesday, April 15, 2020

Sunny Wednesday

Pink Rose
It has been another sunny and warm day, here.  It was warm enough for me to take my socks off in the afternoon! They are back on now, though!  LOL!

I spent the day monitoring my blood pressure (it started out good, then went up, so I took one of my medications, but then, it went down very low; I checked it again and it was better, but, my pulse rate was high, so I took the medication I take to control that, along with my daily chemo pill.  I checked, again, a little after 10:00 p.m. and the pressure was low normal and the pulse was good.  I will check again, before I go to bed, to see if I need to take the night blood pressure pill.

However, I have been drinking my water!  My glass holds 16 oz., which is two cups.  So far, I have drunk three full glasses, or 6 cups.  Plus, a cup of tea in the morning and I ate an orange in the evening, as I didn't feel like having a cup of tea, then.   I squeezed half a lemon into my 4th glass of water and I am sipping that now, as I type.

Three Pink Roses

Today, in the afternoon, my daughter texted me to say that the apartment building's fire alarm went off!  How scary!  She said she had been cooking rice, but, she unplugged her rice cooker, packed up her laptop, put on one of the masks I had given her, picked up her backpack, and was getting ready to evacuate the building, when the alarm stopped.  She said she looked out her window and saw the fire engine parked outside, so, I guess they turned the alarm off.  Thank goodness there was no fire or real cause for alarm!  As my daughter said, it would not be possible to maintain any semblance of social distancing while evacuating a building due to a fire!  Everyone will be crowded in the staircase and milling about the pavement, outside!  There was a fire in her apartment building, one year, but, she was visiting me, that time, and wasn't up there when it happened.  Let's hope that there won't be another fire, especially at this time!  We have enough things to worry about and deal with as it is!

Today, for brunch, I ate some milkrice with the onion sambol and some of the meat curry friend S had made.  I didn't feel very hungry at dinner, so I ate a scrambled egg with half a baked potato, that I cut up and fried a bit in butter.  I might eat an apple or the last of the grapes a bit later.

Double Colored Rose
Are you getting tired of seeing pictures of roses?

I have had a rather non-productive day, today.  However, in the morning, I watered the peach tree per gardener friend M's texted instructions and thinned a few more of the baby peaches.  The concern is that the branches, which are really mere twigs as this point, will not be able to bear the weight of the developing fruit and the tree is too young to be able to afford any branches breaking off!  As it is, I found two twigs that had broken!

Later, I checked the mail, but, there wasn't anything in my mail box.  It would have been a good day to walk, but I didn't feel quite up to it.  But, I practiced the piano, cleaned Dancer's litter box, and did the dishes, washing a few items by hand and the rest in the dishwasher, which is running, now, as I type this.  I also wiped down the kitchen counters, so I feel that I have been at least somewhat productive, after all!

I called friend R in the evening and chatted with her for a bit and, later, video chatted with my daughter.

Today, I am grateful for:
- There wasn't a fire at my daughter's apartment building!
- Blood pressure monitors
- Getting rehydrated and feeling better
- Garden flowers
- Being able to video chat with my daughter

Thursday's To Do List:
- Put away a load of laundry
- Dust the family room and my bedroom
- Paperwork


In case you are tired of seeing roses:

Geraniums


How was your Wednesday?  What are your plans for Thursday?

16 comments:

  1. I'll never get tired of seeing rose photos so don't worry about that!

    The thought of dealing with an evacuation from a multi occupancy building during these strange times is scary and I'm so relieved it was a false alarm. Is your daughter a worrier or can she put it behind her?

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    1. Glad you enjoy the rose photos, Eileen. No doubt you'll soon have flowers on your rose bushes, too.

      My daughter tends to be a bit of a worrier, just like her mother. But, she is doing OK. She doesn't dwell on things too much.

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  2. Beautiful roses! So nice you are having good warm days. I need to drink more water also! I always forget! Andrea

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    1. Thank you, Andrea. Stay hydrated! We tend to forget how important it is to stay hydrated, especially in the winter, when it isn't as hot.

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  3. The roses are absolutely beautiful. I'll never tire of them.

    I'm glad the fire alarm was a false alarm. It would have been quite scary.

    We actually have had snow the last couple of days and snow tomorrow in the forecast. It hasn't stuck so far but tomorrow we might have accumulation.

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    1. Thank you, Sharon. Both my daughter and I are very grateful the fire alarm was a false alarm!

      Oh, I remember those winters in Wisconsin where it would snow in April and I'd be longing for spring to arrive! One year, it even snowed in mid-May! It was finals week, I remember. Might have been in 1975 or so.

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  4. Scary as when there are thngs like fires near our children. Glad she's okay. I was wondering if you could do a post on how you make your milk rice (please) and also the onion sambol?

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    1. We were especially concerned about being exposed to the virus during evacuation, etc. But, fortunately, that didn't happen.

      For milk rice, I cook rice in a pot, the regular way, and then, once it is almost boiled, I add either coconut milk or regular cows' milk and a little salt and cook it on low heat until the milk is absorbed and the rice is of a soft and sticky consistency. My problem with doing posts about my cooking is I don't measure! If I had to estimate, I'd say, if I cook 1 cup of raw rice, then, I might add about 3/4 cup to 1 1/4 cup milk, depending on the type of rice I use (long grain white rice would require less milk, basmati rice might require more).

      The onion sambol - I peel and thinly slice (or, sometimes, dice), a large onion or two, (I use regular yellow onions), and saute it in some oil (vegetable oil is fine), with several curry leaves, a few pieces of pandan leaves, chili powder, salt, a type of dried fish known as Maldive fish that has been pounded into small bits (the fish can be omitted), a couple of pieces of cinnamon, 4-5 cloves, 4-5 cardamom pods, and some sugar (1-2 tablespoons, depending on the amount of onions). Saute on low to medium heat until the onions have been caramelized. In the meantime, soak some tamarind in a bit of water. At the end of cooking, add the tamarind, along with the soaking liquid. If you don't have tamarind, add some lemon (or lime) juice. The onion sambol should be both sweet and spicy.

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    2. Thanks, Bless. They both sound delicious. I can cook dhal and stuff but it's all very basic so anything new that appeals - I'm now trying them out too.

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    3. You are more than welcome, Ratnamurti. I do have a recipe with quantities, written down, somewhere, so, I can dig it up, if needed. Otherwise, I know that there are many recipes online and some videos, as well. :)

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  5. What a good thing your daughter didn't have to leave the apartment and that there was no fire. It doesn't bear thinking about during the COVID19 situation.
    Love those rose photos, especially the double coloured one. The geranium is beautiful, too, such a glowing colour. Which reminds me, I first noticed years ago that there are certain times of day when flowers really glow, usually when the light is starting to turn to dusk.
    Weather is not too swift for April, with cold, wind, trying to snow! No wonder the geese haven't come back yet!

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    1. Thank you, Bushlady. Yes, we are very glad there wasn't a fire! She did leave the apartment, today, to retrieve some packages of groceries that had been delivered, but, she was fully prepared with her homemade mask and she said she only encountered one other person, who was entering the building as she was leaving the lobby area where the packages were.

      Sounds like spring is still a long way away for you! It's amazing how the geese know when it is the right time to return!

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  6. I will never tire of your roses or any of the flowers in your garden, and I appreciate that you are still sharing those photos. Those geraniums are a lovely colour.

    My sister had her surgery today. The tissue was sent to the pathologist, so we won't have any answers for a while. She will probably stay in the hospital until Saturday. What a horrible time for this. Her husband was not allowed inside the hospital because of this covid virus. I talked to my daughter today and apparently they are going to do the spinal tap tomorrow on my granddaughter, despite the virus. I am wrapped tighter than a drum this week.

    Thank goodness the fire alarm was a false alarm. I just couldn't imagine what your daughter was feeling.

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    1. Glad you enjoyed the photos of the roses, Susan.

      I hope your sister's surgery was successful and the tissue results come back as all clear. You'd think that they would get an immediate reading so that the surgeon will know whether everything was removed that needed to be removed! Hope her recovery will be an easy one.

      I hope your granddaughter's spinal tap will proceed smoothly and everything will be found to be well with her, too. I'm sending lots of positive thoughts and prayers their way, Susan, and for you, too. Take care of yourself so you can continue to be there for them. (((HUGS)))

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  7. I'm so glad you're daughter's fire alarm wasn't because of a real fire.
    She responded pretty quickly, gathering her things in case she couldn't return.
    It's a good exercise to think through for all of us.

    Yeah for drinking water!

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    1. Thank you, Debra; yes, we are very relieved that it wasn't a real fire! And that it happened during the day, when she was already up and alert. It would have been total panic to wake up to the fire alarm!

      Thank you! I need all the encouragement and cheering I can get to make myself drink enough water! :D

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