What to eat?

I told you about my dry mouth and how Biotene has helped. But I still have trouble swallowing certain foods, especially meat. Another frustrating thing is  a lot of the foods I eat taste differently, and not in a good way.

That makes it much harder to think of meals to eat.

This was my meals for today: Breakfast was a chocolate croissant from Panera. Lunch was sweet potato fries with alioli, from G Burgers. Snack was some chips and dip. Dinner: 2 slices of pizza, and I had a few pieces of Tuscan melon for dessert. Oh and many many glasses of water (and Pepsi).

Not very well balanced meals. I like salads but the lettuce gets stuck in the roof of my mouth and won't go down :( . My doctor didn't see any infection or something wrong when he checked my mouth and throat.

It is getting better, so maybe it will just take time.

Dedicated to Lulu

(With Apologies to "The Sound of Music")

 

How do you solve a problem like Lulu?

 

 Many a thing you know I'd like to tell her

Many a thing she ought to understand

But how do you make her behave

And listen to all you say

How do you keep her from "going" in the rug?
 

 But I'd like to say a word in her behalf

Lulu makes me laugh :)

 

She's a darling, she's a headache

and she's mine!

 

 

 

Movie Sunday

Today was a quiet day. I did absolutely nothing other than watching a couple of movies.

Marvin left in the morning to get breakfast, and later he went shopping for groceries. He also went to have the SSR and the pickup washed.

I watched 2 movies. One was "The Big Wedding" it has a great cast (DeNiro, Diane Keaton, Susan Sarandon, etc.) but it was not a good or funny movie. Disappointing.

The other movie was called "Letting Go" (2012). Is one of those Indie type movies.  I was not familiar with the actors. That's what the review said:
Letting Go is a warm, entertaining, funny and thought provoking film filled with interesting characters and three scene stealing dogs.

I hope you all had a good Sunday.

Happy Feet 2

A couple of days ago I went shopping for groceries at Stater Brothers and a cute Asian guy came and handed me a leaflet. I looked at it . It was for the "Grand Opening" of La Mirada Foot Spa, located conveniently in the same  lot as Stater Brothers.

 An introductory $5.00 off coupon was attached to the card.

I decided to give it a try. I will go on Monday. That's what you get for $25.00 minus the $5.00 coupon:

15 minutes head, neck, shoulder, arms and hand massage.
30 minutes foot massage.
15 minutes back massage.

That seems perfect for me, since I cannot sit still for a whole hour, this way is divided in 15 minutes massages, but for the 30 minutes foot massage, which I could handle, because I love having my feet massaged.

I will let you know how it goes :)

Happy Feet

Ever since my 30's, I never wore sandals that showed my toes, they were gross looking, and I never wore nail polish. I think the reason is  I wore high heels when I was in my  teens and early 20's. Stilettos at times, and it screwed up my feet. Then when living in Idaho, I had the car accident and shattered my left ankle, that also contributed to my foot looking weird.

I started going to the podiatrist last year and he was really helpful and told me what to do to keep my feet/toenails looking better.

I went to the podiatrist today. My feet look and feel smooth and refreshed. Like a baby's really!  My podiatrist recommended AQUAPHOR ointment for cracked heels, and of course Ben Gay for nail fungus (it worked).

Here's a picture. You may not think much of it, my toes are still stubby looking but my nails are awesome. I'm ready for some nail polish :)

Buyer Beware

We have been talking for a while about having the exterior of the house painted. Talking to Amy, our next door neighbor, she told me they were painting their house too, and at my request, gave me the card of the painter so he could give us an estimate. The estimate for her house was $2700.00.

Then the other day I got a call from a woman that said we had been referred by somebody in the neighborhood and they could come and give us an estimate. She said it was a company in La Mirada, called Family Builders, and we may have seen their trucks? So we  made an appointment for Wednesday.

He showed up and checked the house, and wrote stuff down, and asked exactly what we wanted...etc. He (Shawn) was very personable, spoke with an accent..Marvin asked him where he was from, he said..guess. Marvin said Middle East, I said Jordan? he said he was not a Muslim, Marvin guessed Israel, he said yes.

Anyway he kept on talking, getting personal asking how long we'd been married, showed us a picture of his son, said his wife was pregnant with a girl, etc. He also offered to bring some falafel and hummus next time (if we hired him/his company).

I asked him where was he located in La Mirada, he said the home office was in Riverside, and offices in Ontario, etc.  The company was called Dream Builders. And he started showing us papers of  insurance, California license, etc. I was annoyed because that didn't match what I was told on the phone.

Anyway since he was here I thought it wouldn't hurt to see his estimate. So he  wrote down everything they were going to do, like patch the cracks (he said quacks instead all the time and it made me giggle silently), sand blast, cover the windows, fix the wooden sills, etc. It would take about 10-12 days, with 5 or 6 men working!? I kept on asking what was the estimate. With much fanfare, he wrote down a number and showed it to us: 

                                   $ 16,950.00

Marvin and I were speechless. I said no way. That was way more than what we were planning on spending which was around $3000.00. He smirked and said theirs was quality work. I said well thanks for your time and got up. But he wouldn't take no for an answer. He made a big deal out of calling his boss, and gave us 20% off. He stayed almost an hour trying to get us to sign in. I already had made up my mind that the whole thing seemed like a scam so I kept on saying no, no way, goodbye.

Finally after much writing, calling his "boss" etc etc. He said he would do not only the exterior painting, but also stain the wooden posts in the patio, paint the ramp, put gutters, etc. etc. His lowest price then was $9750.00. Marvin perked up a little but I said NO right away. He wanted  me to talk to Marvin and told me he (Marvin) seemed happy with the price and I was denying him the happiness of having the house painted. WTF!

He went outside while Marvin and I talked. I didn't want to, but  it seemed the only way he would ever leave. Marvin was wavering a little but I said no way. I mean the last amount was almost half of the original amount and on top of it he was adding all that extra stuff. Really?

So I went outside and told him, sorry the answer is still no, he kept on trying, saying we could put  just $500.00 down and $50.00 a month for like 20 years. I said no again and again and I was getting extremely annoyed. So finally he left but was not happy at all.

So that's the story. By the way, there is such a company, I checked reviews in Yelp, and other people had bad experiences with them too. Some even said they preyed on seniors. Pfffffffffffffffffffffffffft!

End of July recap

Time seems to fly by...we are already in August.

Highlights of the month:

Tristan came to visit us for a few days. I had fun going with him to Huntington Beach and meeting his friend Ruben. I hope he enjoyed himself.

Had to take Marvin to the doctor for a very painful pulled ligament. He seems to be feeling better now.

Lizzie came over for the weekend of the 20th. Always good to see her :)

I ended the month by having my anual physical. I am glad to report everything is fine. My dry mouth is better and I can swallow again :)

Books I read this month:

Wendy Miller - Three Good Things

Deirdre Martin - Kiss the Bride

Tim Tharp - The Spectacular Now

Susan Mallery - Barefoot Season

Susan McBride - The Truth about Love and Lightning

Allie Larkin - Why Can't I Be You

Lori Wilde - The Welcome Home Garden Club

 

I will start reading the book recommended by Mia.

 

Here's to a great August!