DAY 48 FINDING TREASURES

Day 48 since I have left the house

I made rice pilaf from scratch today. I had some rice that I used to sop up some oil a while ago and some article I read suggested I save the rice to make rice pilaf.  So today I got the ingredients together and started cooking.  First I toasted the almonds in butter.  I got distracted cleaning out a cabinet.  I found all sorts of treasures.  I found some homemade jam that my neighbor's gave me more than 10 years ago.  I asked my brother if it was smart to throw it away and he said yes.

While I was distracted, I cooked the almonds too much.  I didn't burn them but they got very brown.  The rice turned out really delicious.  It is creamy and tasty.

I also found udon noodles, rice noodles and vegan "gelatin" in the back of the cabinet.  It is so much fun to find such treasures.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 47 HAPPI IS HOME AGAIN

Day 47 since I have left the house

Today I got Happi's ashes delivered to me.  My dog walker went to pick up Lucky's medicine and while he was there he also picked up Happi's ashes.  I feel so sad and at peace to have Happi home again.  She is no longer on a shelf at the vet's office.

Here is the wooden box with her ashes.  I covered up the personal information. 

Happi is home again where she belongs.  Rest in Peace Happi.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 46 ORDERED GROCERIES FOR DELIVERY

Day 46 since I have left the house

Just on a whim today I logged into my new and unused grocery delivery account.  I was in shock that there was a delivery date available for this Friday.  There was a date sooner but I have some conference calls and I didn't want to get a delivery in the middle of a conference call like I did today.  Lucky went absolutely ballistic when the person ran the doorbell and I didn't have my computer on mute.

The grocery didn't have a lot I needed since I am vegan but they had some stuff.  They had soymilk (not my favorite but beggars...), canned beans, pickles, saltines, tortillas, and potato chips.  That made me happy.  They did not have vegan butter, vegan mac and cheese, vegan hot dogs and vegan ice cream.  They also did not red peppers.  So I will try to ask someone to check a local store.

I chose the option "I will be home to receive" rather than "I will not be home" and I don't know what the difference is since we are all at home!  All the "I will not be home" were taken.  Seems weird.  Who is not at home?  Where are all these people during a lock down?  And it is a window of time, you can't be there for 1, 2, or 4 hours during a lock down?  What do you have scheduled?  People have to work if they are essential workers, I know but what about everyone else?  Maybe they have conference calls too and don't want to be disturbed.  I don't know.  I am just excited to replenish some stuff.  I have been hoarding my one bag of chips for weeks.  I ate the first bag in the first week of the lock down but I have kept the second bag for 4 weeks.  It is my emergency comfort bag. 

I haven't run out of anything but bread and kidney and pinto beans so far but I wanted to bulk up on the rest of the items.  I get anxious when I get low on certain items. 

Until tomorrow...

DAY 45 BIG DECISIONS COMING UP

Day 45 since I have left the house

I have a very big decision to make in my life coming up.  It is a decision that I was so sure I knew what my decision was going to be pre-coronavirus but everything changed on 3/4 when the state placed a state of emergency.  Then there was a stay-at-home order that has been in place for six weeks.  It is now in effect for another month.  Who knows how much longer it will be in effect?

I am on a total lock down to protect my health.  I have to stay laser focused that my health is my number one priority.  I have to keep thinking: put your mask on first before you put masks on others.  Take care of myself before I can take care of others.      

Until tomorrow...

DAY 44 TAKING A TRAIN RIDE

Day 44 since I have left the house

Today's Windows screen saver is a train on a bridge going through a forest.  It is so beautiful.  I have always wanted to take a train ride through a forest.  I may have when we were kids during one of our many camping trips on an old fashioned train.  But I am talking about a modern train going fast traveling through miles and miles of forest.  I think there is a train like this in Canada and in Russia.  I think the one in Canada is probably more accessible for me to dream about.  I saw some clips of a train ride on one of those morning shows on TV.  My parents also did a train ride, I think.  I know I would fall asleep like a baby on a train.  Any continuous noise like an being on an airplane or ocean waves or rain makes me sleepy.  I have to drive if you want me to stay awake in a car.  It is my dream to take one of those train rides to see the countryside.

My friend M texted me while I was in the middle of my weekly SundayFunday Friends zoom to tell me that he found PEANUT BUTTER at the store.  The people on zoom thought I won the lottery by my expression.  It was creamy Jif peanut butter.  OMG!  He bought me two jars.  Hallelujah.  He also got me two more packets of muffins so I have something to spread that luscious, creamy peanut butter on.  M is the best!!  I am going to have peanut butter dreams!  I am almost done with the jar that I am using now and I only have two little jars left but now I have four jars!

I spoke on the phone with my step-sister for an hour.  We have gotten so close during this shut in.  This is probably one of the best things that has happened during this time.  I also spoke to my cousin for an hour.  We got closer in the past year.  We talk once a week.  It has been so wonderful having these connections during this shelter-in-place.

Until tomorrow...

Day 43 SINGALONG

Day 43 since I have left the house

I spent an hour today on a Facetime call with my niece and nephew.  They showed me a cool project they have been working on with a marble.  My nephew has been working on some science projects with plants.  Then they took me outside while they jumped on their trampoline and played on their playset.

At 12 noon the area I live in had a singalong and I did it while my niece and nephew were on Facetime.  They were disappointed that more people didn't do it but they said I had a nice singing voice.  It was fun even though not many people did it.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 42 CORONAVIRUS FATIGUE

Day 42 since I have left the house

I have thought long and hard about how I can help while being locked in my house.  I have given money to charities and bought Easter dinner for almost 20 first responders and people who can't afford a meal.  Before the coronavirus was known to be serious in our area, I passed out fliers telling people to wash their hands and distance from others.  Now I have to stay inside or in my backyard (which is a jungle) to stay safe so there is not much I can do to help out. 

People are starting to get fatigued about being inside their houses for so long.  I haven't so far partly because I went into this knowing it was going to be a long haul.  Now, who knows how I will feel months from now.  I may get tired of watching reruns when the fall comes and there are no new shows to watch because they can't film a new show with social distancing and face masks.  I may get tired of connecting to family and friends by phone and video and texting.  Friends may get tired of not seeing me in person.  Lucky may get fed up being inside all the time and me being home all the time.  Maybe she liked it when I left her alone for hours at a time? 

Until tomorrow...

DAY 41 CONDOLENCE CARD

Day 41 since I have left the house

I cried again today.  I got a card and opened it.  It was a condolence card from an Animal Aid Society.  My vet made a donation in the memory of Happi  to the Animal Aid Society.  They wrote a very nice sentiment "Please know that you and Happi are in our thoughts".  I was so pleasantly surprised, it made me cry a little.

I have been trying to get Lucky to learn to "come".  She used to be very good at it but during the last year she has been a bit neglected while Happi needed so much of my time.  She sometimes just stares at me when I tell her to come if she doesn't want to come.  I am spending time while the shelter-in-place to retrain Lucky.  She loves to do a good job so she makes for a good dog to train.  As long as I have treats!  The behaviorist told me years ago that Lucky loves positive attention more than anything.  She just loves to be loved. When the dog walker reaches in his pocket she makes a beeline to sit at attention in front of him.  She knows the rules!

I will be honest healthwise.  I have had a tiny sore throat for the last two days.  I think it is from allergies but like everyone, I am a bit paranoid even though I haven't gone outside or been near another person for 41 days.  I am so careful with packages and mail.  I bring in a package or mail with gloves and leave them to sit for 24 hours or 72 hours depending on what they are packaged in.  I am super careful but it still makes me nervous.

I remember when I went to the ER and the doctor's were suspect that I was even sick because I didn't have a fever but now I am reading that many patients with Covid-19 do not have a fever.  Plus I don't get fevers because of the medications I am on suppress fevers.  But I remember arguing with the ER doctor about the fact that I didn't have a fever.  I even told him to call my primary doctor for confirmation.  Anyway it is interesting to read about it now.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 40 HAPPY EARTH DAY

Day 40 since I have left the house

Happy Earth Day!!  Such a weird Earth Day since we are all inside.  I would normally go outside and walk around or go somewhere and enjoy the outside.  Well, not this year. Instead I ate too many chocolate chip cookies. 

I got some more Amazon deliveries of the tea I like and some probiotics that my doctor wants me to take.  I have to wait a few days to open them since they came in plastic packaging.  I also got my Roomba's new battery.  That is exciting.  I miss running the Roomba.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 39 COOKIES AND SOUP

Day 39 since I have left the house

Today I tried Qigong for the first time.  I watched a show about it on cable and did some of the movements.  I thought I would be interested but after doing it, I decided it was not for me.  I used to do Tai Chi and I think that is more my style.  It is more constant movement and more like a dance.  Maybe I will try to do Tai Chi tomorrow and see what I remember.

I did a phone chat with my nutritionist today.  He said it sounded like I was doing pretty good with the shelter-in-place.  I planned pretty well and I have meals to prepare.  We went over the multitudes of grains and dry things I have in my cabinet and what I can make with them.  I have about 8 types of rice.  I could live on rice alone for weeks!  While I was in the cabinet I found some old (don't ask how old) cookie mixes.  They are Betty Crocker so I can make them vegan very easy.  They are just dry mixes so there is nothing to go bad.  

So tonight I made chocolate chip cookies!  They came out really delicious.

I also made soup for dinner.  It is White Bean Fennel Soup.  It was so delicious and filling for dinner. I used kale instead of spinach and it still tasted super.

Until tomorrow...

DAY 38 WORK PROJECT

Day 38 since I have left the house

More of my lost mail showed up today.  One piece was a magazine that I pay for so that made me so happy.

I spent almost all day working on a work project since the deadline was today.  I fooled around too much last week and left it so I had to rush at the end.  I usually don't do that but this is a difficult time.  I get stuck watching news reports and reading news stories.  I talk to friends and family in the middle of the day.  I text with friends at all hours.  I have a need to feel connected.  I know some people feel overwhelmed by all the connection but I am not one of them.

I haven't left my house in 38 days.  I don't know what the outside world looks like except what I have seen on the news.  I haven't seen neighbors except for the few that I have seen from my doorway when they stand at the bottom of my stairs.  I haven't had the "shopping" experience since this shelter-in-place started.  I see the postman more than anyone else when he drops off and takes my mail.  Yes, it is my choice.  I could choose to go outside and risk my health.  But I feel I don't have a choice.

Until tomorrow...

QUARANTINE DESSERT

Day 37 I have not left the house

I baked a lemon poppy seed loaf today.  It was a mix that I found in my cupboard from years ago.  I won't tell you the Best By Date but I tried it anyway.  I figured it was dry ingredients so how bad could they get?  I used flax seed instead of eggs and vegan butter.  It tastes okay.  Not as good as it probably tasted years ago but it will do as a Quarantine Dessert or Quarantine Breakfast Treat.

I was doing a word problem on Facebook and I thought I got it but I was told it may not be right.  Here is the one I got right:

Downtown.

Here is the one that I was told I got wrong.  If you think you know it, please let me know.

I said it was Circles under Eyes but someone said that didn't account for the space between the I's.

Until tomorrow...

STARTED MY CAR

Day 36 I have not left the house

I rode 6 miles on the stationary bike today.  I have been trying to ride the bike a few times a week.  I put the TV on and ride away.  It makes the time go fast.

I started my car for the first time in 40 days.  I thought it was time to start the car and let it run for five minutes.  I was worried the battery was going to run down not running for so long.

Until tomorrow...

ITEMS THAT ARE HANGING ON

Day 35 I have not left the house

The USPS found more of my missing mail.  It is trickling in little by little.  I am so happy it has been found.

I am dealing with some items that have been hanging on.  Such as the charge on my credit card bill from the hotel, my missing mail, my insurance company appeal, and the water company delivering the wrong type of water.  All these things take up so much time.  I feel horrible for those staff who are laid off.

Besides work I have been working on the puzzle!  It is going slow.  My goal is August I think...

Until tomorrow...

PERFORMED A NEW TASK TODAY

I read the Federal Guidelines for opening the government from the Coronavirus.  It seems that I will be sheltering-in-place for at least Phase 1 and Phase 2.  Who knows how long that will be?  I am blessed I am able to work from home and can stay at home. 

I performed a new task today.  I deposited a check through an app.  I was so happy because a paycheck showed up yesterday that I was told was lost in the USPS mail debacle where my mail was returned instead of forwarded.  Turns out it was just sitting somewhere and was forwarded yesterday.  I contacted my client and they had not stopped payment yet so I was able to deposit it.  I live close to my branch so I usually just pop by and deposit it in person but this app is great.  So easy. 

I was on a support group zoom today for foster and adopt parents.  The support group usually meets in person but I can never go because it is at an awkward time too far away.  I was happy it was online because I could participate.  I met some great parents in all stages of the process.  

I have been coloring lately.  I find it fun and calming.  I have a hard time sitting still and this helps when I watch TV.

Until tomorrow..

HOTEL BILL BATTLE IS OVER

My battle with the hotel I stayed at in Florida is finally over.  To bring you up to speed, I stayed in a hotel that I paid for through a third-party company.  When I got to the hotel, the hotel also charged me for my stay.  I argued with the hotel during my stay and got the money refunded.  Then again during my stay, I was charged again and got it credited.  The morning I checked out, once again, I was charged for but for one night.  I argued with the hotel and got it credited right away.  When I got home and I got a notification on my phone that I was once again charged for one night.  This time I called the credit card company.  I was done dealing with the hotel.  I got a credit almost right away.  Then a month later I got another charge on my credit card (interestingly with the original date over a month later).  I called the credit card company again and I got a credit.  Then a month later I got another charge (also for the original date now two months later) and I called the credit card company and got another credit.  I got my credit card bill this month and finally no charge!  I think this nightmare is finally over.

It was a very nice hotel and the staff was very nice.  It was in a very convenient location.  I think I would stay there again but I would not use a third-party company or at least that third-party company.

I had a tele-appointment with my gut doctor today.  She agreed with my RA doctor that I stay in the house until a vaccine comes out.  She thinks I am a prime candidate for an antibody test since I am so susceptible.  The question is 1) was my Covid-19 test accurate, 2) was it a false negative, or 3) did I get one of the newer faster tests and that is why my test was returned in two days when I was told it would take 4-7 days.  Other people who were tested the same time as me waited five to seven days and the woman who called me said she "never had a test return so fast."   So I really want to get an antibody test to be sure. 

Until tomorrow...

COVID SIGNS

I found this great sign to put on my door.  I wish I had it weeks ago.  Yup, that is Lucky.

It is from a Facebook page called "Gator Bait Gear".  It asks for a donation. There are signs for people with cancer, breathing issues, first responders, medical people and more.

There is also this free one:

I think these are great if you want or need them. 

Until tomorrow...

REMEMBERING HAPPI TODAY

It has been one month since Happi passed.  The house is so quiet and so lonely without her.  I still expect to see or hear her.  It is almost a shock to see her bed and not see her in it.  The vet's office called to say the box with her ashes are ready for pick up but that will have to wait.  I really would like to have them.  It is right what people say, it is hard to really grieve without a funeral or the ashes or something.  I feel like she was here and then gone and...nothing.  I have no ashes to scatter like I did with Taiko and no box to put on the mantel.

I can not image what people all over the world are going through when their loved ones are dying.  Happi was my furry family and I am having a hard time.  Not being able to have the customary funeral or sitting shiva or scattering ashes or having a memorial/wake or going to have a beer in someone's honor somehow makes it all so not normal and not right.  Just hollow.  Like the person is not being honored.  It makes me sad.

Just remembering Happi today.

Until tomorrow...

CHILI AND DENSE CORNBREAD

I decided to start working out today.  I rode the stationary bike for more than 3 miles today.  Prior to riding my stationary bike, I tried to fix the light fixture in the exercise area in the garage to no avail.  I changed the light bulbs but I think it is another part that needs to be replaced way above my pay grade.  So I will exercise in semi darkness.  I did manage to get to change the batteries in the stationary bike to get the programming working and I got Netflix working on the VERY OLD TV in the garage.  We are talking a TV from 1990.  It has a TV tube.  The sound is not great but who cares when I am working out on a stationary bike?

Then I made chili and corn bread.  The chili came out great!  I had a big bowl.  The corn bread, well, it was a bit dense and it didn't rise very much.  It still tasted like corn bread and I ate it but it wasn't that flaky corn bread I was looking for.  Since this is what I have and I am not going to waste it during a lock down, I ate it by soaking it in chili!  It tasted like cornbread and that is what counted.  I now have chili and cornbread for days.

Until tomorrow...

BREADGASM

Okay, I am so excited.  My friend M went to the store and bought me bread.  Tons of bread.  He got me two loaves of Jewish rye bread and three packages of cinnamon raisin English muffins.  I am so excited to have bread in the house again.  It is amazing how much you miss bread when you don't have it.  How many times I wanted a piece of toast or a grilled cheese sandwich?

He also got me Veganese.  I thought I had enough but after making vegan chickun salad and "tuna" salad, I was running low.  Now I am set for another month at least.

The drop off made me so happy.  Then my new yoga pants came early from Amazon.  And I got my delivery of Israeli Pearl Couscous.  I love pearl couscous.  I got two huge containers of couscous and now I can make as much as I want.  So I made some cumin flavored couscous for dinner to eat with chickpea samosas.  Delicious dinner.

Until tomorrow...

TROLLS MOVIE

It's it funny how sometimes you are looking forward to something for so long that once it comes, you don't want to do it right away?  I have been looking forward to this Trolls movie for weeks.  I loved the Trolls first movie and I thought I will be so excited for this second Trolls movie.  I have it on my calendar.  But then today it came out and I didn't watch it.  I think maybe I will this weekend.  Maybe I built it up too much in my head as something to look forward to?  There is so little to look forward to these days except getting out of our homes that watching the Trolls seemed like a good thing to look forward to.

But then what is the next thing once this is gone?  Will there be another fun thing to look forward to?  another funny movie?   A good show to watch?  I know Hollywood needs to make money but they are missing out on a great opportunity here.  I am a captive audience.  I have very little to spend my money on (what little I have) and I would spend it on a great, funny movie if they rolled one out right now.  We need funny movies right now.  Where are Amy Poehler, Wanda Sykes, Melissa McCarthy, Whoopie Goldberg, Julia Louis-Dreyfus, Ali Wong, Tina Fey, Tiffany Haddish,  and Leslie Jones?  We need to laugh right now.

Until tomorrow..

LOST MAIL

I decided during this crazy time that I would have some of my business mail temporarily sent to my home.  I thought this would be a simple task.  NO!  First, it takes up to 10 business days to take effect it said.  Well, it took more during this unsettled time.  Then once the mail started coming, the mail that was at my going to my other address during those "more than 10 days" has disappeared.  I think it was sent "return to sender" for some strange reason.  I contacted a credit card company and they said the bill was returned.  So I spent my day trying to track down my mail. 

I finally sent in my appeal to the Insurance-Company-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named for my Doctor bill from 2018.  It has gone to collections already because the Insurance-Company-Who-Shall-Not-Be-Named refuses to pay their portion.  I have been fighting this for four months. 

It was a full day!  Dealing with bureaucracies. 

Until tomorrow...

RIP BUZZ PONCE

The whole family got together and Zoomed for a family member's birthday.  It was actually fun.  Seeing all the boxes of all the family members it looked like the Brady Bunch.  We sang happy birthday and chatted and caught up.  Zoom gave us longer than our allotted 40 minutes.  The family member seemed very happy.  We had cats mugging for the camera and dogs running from the camera. 

On a sad note, after I got off the Zoom call I found out a friend passed away.  He did not pass away from Covid-19, he passed away from renal and liver failure.  His name was Buzz Ponce and he was a great guy.  I only met him once but we became friends.  I met him when I drove from my home to Oregon.  He was riding his bike from the Canadian boarder to San Francisco.  We met at a pizza parlor in a little town in Oregon.  I was there by myself and he was there with his best friend who drove the van with his stuff.  I was ordering my vegan pizza and we started talking.  We decided to eat together and talked and laughed for over an hour. I found out he wrote a book about baseball and was thinking of writing another book about his bike ride.  I immediately bought his book Finding Frank when we parted and read it when I got home.   He asked me to read and edit his book titled A Long Ride Coming.  It is a tribute to his father.  I am even in the book where he wrote about meeting me in Oregon.  I loved the book and not just because I am featured so prominently in it.

We kept in touch.  He then did another bike ride from coast to coast to raise money for Warriors Heart Foundation.  His bike trip was 3100 miles.  I can't even image!

This week Buzz Ponce passed away.  He will be missed by so many lives that he touched including mine.  

Until tomorrow...

DO I TAKE ORENCIA OR NOT?

Back when I got sick the week of March 16th, I stopped my Orencia since I started antibiotics.  I have been off the antibiotics for a few weeks now but I still have a bit of a cough.  Plus Covid-19 is rampant everywhere.  Taking Orencia would make me even more susceptible to getting Covid-19 or pneumonia again.

Today I decided to email my RA doctor and ask him his opinion.  Yesterday I contacted Bristol-Meyers Squibb and they could not give me an answer.  My doctor got back to me with an answer I was not expecting.  He agreed with me.  He said it was best if I held off taking Orencia for now since it did make me more susceptible for an infection and to wait to start it again until the Covid-19 infections decline.

So I will not be taking Orencia for the time being.  I would rather feel joint pain than Covid-19 or pneumonia.

Until tomorrow...

REAL BRCA RESULTS

The postman came to get my mail today.  He was so sweet, he asked me if I was feeling better as he was wearing a gas mask.  This world has gotten so crazy. 

Another pouring rainy day.  Lucky went with the dog walker but only for a short time.  The rain started to come down and he brought her back home.  I wish I had taken a photo of Lucky wrapped in a towel, soaking wet looking so little.  She was smiling but not so happy she was so wet.  She wanted (in typical dog fashion) to jump up on the couch and the bed.  I had corral her and keep her on her own bed covered with a towel.

I got the report from the doctor from my BRCA test.  Now I have the actual results and not my horrible memory.

1. I have an elevated hereditary cancer result.  
2. I tested negative for any clinically significant mutations in the genes on the hereditary cancer panel.    My risk for hereditary cancer syndrome is lower but not ruled out.  I am still at an elevated risk of cancer based on my breast cancer score or my clinical history analysis.
3. My Breast Cancer score for my remaining lifetime is a 32.2%.  Anything over a 20% is to be considered for modified medical management.  I am in the above average risk category.  The general population is a 10.3%. 
4. Based on my History Analysis modified medical management is identified.
5. My 5 year risk for breast cancer is a 4.9%.   

So that is the report.  Nothing I can do except keep on doing what I am doing.

Until tomorrow...

DID YOU KNOW YOU COULD FREEZE KALE?

What a lazy day!  It was pouring rain and all I wanted to do was curl up on the couch with some hot cocoa and a warm blanket.  Well, that is not what happened.  I had no soymilk to make hot cocoa so cross that off the list.  But I did take a hot bath and curl up on the couch and watch some TV.  Probably too much TV since I ended up only doing a few things on my To Do List.  I did the work I had to get done but not until late in the day.  I spoke to my cousin and my friend.  I scanned some ole photos and put them on a family-only network.  People seemed to enjoy them.

Then I made some awesome soup.  Well, it was more of a stew than a soup.  It was lentil, kale and quinoa stew.  It was really good and I made it before.  I like it because it is easy and takes very few ingredients that you have to prepare.  It is the sort of soup where you throw everything in and let it cook.  Since it has lentils and quinoa it is hearty and full of protein.  Since I used only about 1/3 of the bunch of kale delivered to me, I used a process I saw on facebook.  Earlier today I saw this vegan guy on facebook do this whole presentation of what he ate in a day now that he is sheltering in place.  It was interesting seeing all that he did with what he had.  But the best part was that he showed how to freeze kale without blanching it.  He showed how to freeze greens (hearty greens) without blanching for up to 6 weeks.  Basically you wash the greens, let them dry, then either freeze them whole or cut/break them up at this point.  Then you put them on a sheet pan with paper towel or parchment and put them in the freezer for a few hours until they are frozen.  He called it pre-frozen.  Then you take them out and put them in a freezer bag for long term up to six weeks.  I am excited since I usually can't use a whole kale bunch in a week (the life span of a bunch of kale) and I end up throwing some out.  It is such a waste of perfectly good kale.  Now I will be able to make soup or something next week with the rest of the kale.  Since I froze it with the paper towel between the leaves, it will be easier to pull out a few leaves at a time.

Until tomorrow...

GIRLS MOVIE NIGHT AND NACHOS, TOO MANY NACHOS

I woke up early this morning and ordered food for movie night.  I saw that the place I wanted to order from allowed me to order in advance.  Cool. I could do it at 9 am and not worry about doing it later in the day.  I ordered the makings for nachos and a burrito for tomorrow.  I can't just get nachos because for a vegan that would be chips, salsa, guacamole and beans.  I ordered the chips, guacamole, and beans and I put my salsa and vegan cheese on it at home.  Popped it in the microwave and voila!  Nachos vegan style.

During the day I scanned some old photos to put up on a group site for family to view.  I thought this would be fun for others to see.

Then it came time for the food to be delivered before movie night with the girls.  I got a call 5 minutes before the delivery time; no food.  The delivery guy showed up and there was no order.  He told me to call the delivery support line.  Well, it has no phone number, of course.  It is a chat.  The chat was on pause for too many chats.  So I called the restaurant and they were "why didn't you call the delivery service"  I said "you took my money I just want my food.  We can figure this out together."   And we did.  They found the order and got it out to me pronto.  They were very nice.  I was very nice despite what some people who know me might think. 

Tonight was girls movie night.  It was delayed since my food didn't show up until 3 minutes until 6pm.  Movie night was supposed to start at 6pm.  Normally this would not be a problem because we are all in one place but since we are all sheltering-in-place, we are all watching the movie through Netflix Party and it was scheduled to start at 6pm.  We sorted it out and everyone was patient as I heated up my food.  We were going to watch Bridemaids but Netflix didn't have that movie so we watched Mr. Right.  It was good.  I had seen it before but I had forgotten a lot of it.  I ate too many nachos and I may fall asleep early.  The girls didn't use the chat feature that much so it was more like we were three people watching the same movie at the same time in different places.   Then we didn't talk after the movie so it was a bit disassociated.  Not like when we are together.  There was no chit chat or catching up.

Now I am going to watch Onward on Disney+.  I have been waiting for this movie.  I will write about it tomorrow.

Until tomorrow...

BUSY ALL DAY

The end of today was interesting.  Every day at 7pm like some of this country, we go outside and clap and yell to thank the essential workers, nurses and doctors for their much needed work and sacrifice.  I was out there doing it and I see a neighbor turn on his backyard party lights and bring out a cooler.  Then he welcomes a guest.  I am thinking " what the heck?"  The guest looks at me across the yards and says hi.  He says "I'm so bored"  I said "You are supposed to bored and home sheltering in place".  Then I went inside.  I was so mad.  What are people thinking?  Not only are they putting each other at risk but they are putting all the people they come in contact with at risk.  We are in one of the highest risk areas. 

Then I found out another neighbor left our town and went to their other home in a small town.  How do they know if they are carrying the disease and taking it to people in that small town?  I don't understand.  Or maybe they get it in the small town and bring it back here.  Who knows?

And people ask me why I am staying inside for the duration.  This is why.  These people live yards away from me.  I know them as caring people but this I don't understand.  I think they think they are invincible.  Or that they have lived through the AIDS epidemic so they are already on borrowed time or something.  I don't know. 

All I know is I have already had one life threatening illness that almost killed me and that is enough for me for a long time.  I am keeping my butt in this house for the duration.  I had another neighbor see me in my garage and ask how I was doing.  She was afraid for me because she said my house has been dark and she had not seen me around.  When I told her my situation, she offered to shop for me or do any errands for me.  People in my community are very nice.  I have five people who have offered to shop for me or do errands for me.  That brings tears to my eyes thinking how nice people are being during this difficult time.

I had a neighbor stop by to kvetch (at 10 feet apart with masks on) and he told me what it was like out in the world.  Shops boarded up, the public transportation closed down and the lines at the stores.  He is still going out more than he should but he has a small apartment and a roommate and he says he needs to get out walking.  He didn't have a mask so I gave him one of my heavily guarded few.  He also could not find any paper towels at two stores.  I gave him some of mine.  He is a nice guy and would help me if I needed it.  When I fell over a year ago, he stayed with me until I felt well enough to get home and then helped me get a cab to get us home.  He helped me get in my house.  He was so worried, he came back later that day to make sure I was okay.

Lucky update: I spoke to the vet and he agreed that Lucky may be feeling (do dogs feel?) sad about missing Happi but that her stomach is probably still not right.  So he wanted me to come get the medicine for her.  I couldn't and asked about Fed Ex.  Hours later my doorbell rang and it was the tech from the vet.  She walked it down to my house!!  She said it was a lovely spring day and she needed to get out.  It was about a mile walk (I have walked it myself) and she stayed and chatted (at a distance with our masks on) for a few minutes. Now I have a few months of medicine for Lucky.  They are so nice!  After Happi passed I wrote a Facebook post about how wonderful they were and they made me a Star Fan type thing on Facebook.  Fancy!

Anyway, between visits, laundry, phone calls, work, and text check ins I was busy all day.  I have not been bored yet. 

DNA TEST RESULTS

Today was an interesting day.  I had to wake up early, be showered and ready to go early.  I had my clients package and an Amazon package delivered by 9:30am.  Yes, my toothpaste was delivered.  I am not out of toothpaste yet but I am anticipating outages of certain items and it is better to buy before I run out.  I have one tube left.  I am waiting for antiperspirant to arrive in a few days.  Who knows how long I will be staying in my house?

The I had a tele-doctor appointment with my Ob-Gyn.  Months ago I had a BRCA test done.  If you remember I could not do the spitting in the tube because I do not have enough spit.  They had to do a blood test instead.  Today I got the results.  They were what I have always said it would be; that I am high risk.  But it was really scary to hear it as actual results from a test.  I don't have the actual numbers, they are being sent to me.  I can only write what I remember. 

The test provides women with their remaining lifetime and 5-year risk for developing breast cancer. It confirmed that I am high risk for breast cancer.  It is no longer speculative.  It is confirmed.  The threshold is 20 on the lifetime test.  I am either a 32 or 36.  That means I have a 32% or 36% remaining lifetime risk for having breast cancer. 

Then there is a 5-year risk for breast cancer.  I have a 4% 5-year risk for breast cancer.  That is considered high-risk. 

Then my friend M came to visit.  It was a distance visit approved by my doctor.  My friend stood on the sidewalk at the bottom of my stairs and I sat on the top stair with a mask on.  We visited for an hour.  We talked about current events, work, movies, and, of course, coronavirus.  We made a date to watch a movie together with Netflix Party.

I had a new client sign a contract for work and another client sign a contract for more work.

In all it was a pretty interesting day.

Until tomorrow...

THINGS TO DO TODAY

Today started with me helping my parent with cellphone issues.  It is always fun to give tech support over the phone on a phone you can't see. 

Later it was day three of cheering for the medical workers at 7pm.  More and more people are joining in. 

I have been playing ball inside with Lucky for about a week now.  I throw the ball and she runs and gets it.  She is not very good at giving the ball back so it takes a while.  She loves the exercise. 

I am trying to find a food delivery service.  My area is now inside until May 3rd and there is talk of it being changed to the end of June.  I am trying to get ahead of the curve and buy some food online now.  One service is booked through the end of April.  That is crazy!

Until tomorrow...