My Life – Page 5 – The Dackel Princess

Getting it Done!

So Friday found me on the road to see my new Primary Care Nurse Practitioner.

To say she is lovely, warm, efficient and the only medical professional who has ever treated me would be an understatement. Amy is all of those things and more.

I went in with a list of 5 problems I am having, and she went down the list and seriously addressed each and every one of them!

Finally! A medical professional that actually listens to me and is striving to get a handle on everything.

By the time I left her office, I had prescriptions for a UTI (yes, again), an appointment to have an MRI, and a knee x-ray. There were other things I needed her help with and she was so glad to help me.

The ride home for me was really busy. It was bumper to bumper from our tolls on route 93 north. This lasted for probably 15-20 miles. I wasn’t at all surprised because it’s a holiday weekend and everyone is coming up to go to local fairs and others to close up their summer camps.

I stopped to pick up my mail at the Post Office, only to find my little town in all stupidity has blocked off several more parking spaces. Now they have blocked any space for the disabled to park close enough to the building. Isn’t that against the law? It infuriated me.

A woman I know was defending it because a woman was killed in the crosswalk a few years back. I am sorry for this. But, it was a series of tragic events that led to it.

First, the woman was reading the mail in her hands and not looking as she crossed the road. The teenager who hit her was using his cellphone to text.

You get the picture. It was a rather unfortunate series of events. And now, now it’s making it difficult to get into the Post Office for most people. It’s making a local shipping store (which also has mailboxes) look better and better.

I came home to Lili who greeted me quite happily, and Jack, who was already eating his lunch.

All in all, Friday was a major success!

Thank You!

First I want to thank everyone who has written to me with their love and condolences after the passing of dear Arnie. His loss has taken the wind out of my sails and the sadness is rather great. Your love and care mean a great deal to me.

I woke in the night and discovered an empty bed. Always I would get up and return to a warm furry body waiting for me. Now the bed is empty and I am alone.

Lili and I got up at six o’clock and we both looked at each other and wondered how we would get through the day. Somehow we managed, but tomorrow I need to do a few things around here.

I need to wash Arnie’s bed and put it away. The little dackel steps need to be washed and also stored. For now, we have no small fur babies, and both Lili and I keep expecting to find Arnie sleeping in his bed.

One day, we will adopt a little wire-haired dackel. We will need all the little things that made my pups live and thrive in their home.

One day.

TBT: The Sound of Music & Me

Back in 1966, I played Gretl in our community theater’s version of The Sound of Music. Those were my wonder years as I was not shy and still lived in a world of childlike wonder. Therefore, I looked at the play as a great adventure, and no audience made me nervous.

I was the very youngest in the cast at just 8 years old. And when I look back at that time, I recall working with some of the nicest people I have ever known. I am the very smallest one on the end.

Both the woman who played Maria and the man who played Captain Von Trapp became life-long friends. They always treated me like I was their child.

I am just to the right of “Maria”.

I am not sure if you can read this or not. It is the review for the play. I get a very kind mention. But as I said, this really was a special time for me.

What a truly magnificent experience!

My Hand

In recent weeks I have been having problems with my left wrist/thumb/hand. back in the day, my Mom warned me that sucking my thumb would be my downfall. Today I believed her!

In recent weeks I have been suffering from pain in my left hand/thumb/wrist. Today, in extreme pain I went to the doctor and they verified that I have:

I suspected this but needed someone to verify my diagnosis. I got it! I also got a personalized hard splint, and a game plan to fix me up!

Now I must type with one hand while resting my left hand. I think it is rather hilarious that my left wrist/hand is affected when I am right-handed! Apparently, I am ambidextrous!

So, that’s the news from New Hampshire! Have a great day and a splendid week!

Rain & Chopping

Ah yes, because we have not had enough rain (hahaha!) I woke to downpours on Sunday morning. Lili is brave enough to run out and commune with nature, but dear Arnie must be coaxed.

So I put on my raincoat, got the umbrella out, and headed toward the grass. No one, not even me was happy about this rainstorm and quite honestly, I am not thrilled that the rest of this week we are due to get even more of the wet stuff!

Yesterday was a “chopping” day for me. I knew I was going to make beef stew, and a meat and vegetable spaghetti sauce, So I sat at the kitchen table chopping onions, peppers, mushrooms, carrots, potatoes, and celery. Then I asked which meal Jack wanted? He chose the beef stew, so, I got that in the dutch oven and set it to slowly simmer. Today I will be making the spaghetti sauce.

The strangest part about these two meals is that I’m not eating either one.

After not following my healthy living lifestyle in recent months, I stepped on the scale and nearly fainted. So last week, I started eating correctly again.

But it is so hard!

I know I am not alone in fighting to control my weight. I know that after menopause, you might as well get used to eating like a bunny rabbit. Anything else goes straight to the hips.

So the rest of the day today will be cooking the sauce and I want to take everything out of my closet and clean it. I do this about once every two years. How this disaster happens in there I do not know. It’s like my own private earthquake comes and suddenly everything is a jumbled mess! Ugh!

Have a great day everyone!

TBT: 9 Year Old Me

Well, it was like this. I found this stray cat and brought it home. Mom wasn’t thrilled, but since rescuing animals was my thing, my Mom let it stay.

Shortly thereafter the cat had kittens. And if memory serves me, the mother didn’t make it. So we cared for the kittens and they all made it.

We kept two of them, Ebony and Endora. Ebony had missed his mama and would suckle on anything he could. I surmise these were somewhat feral cats, as I don’t recall them being particularly friendly.

But here I am with the kittens standing in front of our car. I was not yet ten years old.

I have always loved all animals.

Summers on Old Cape Cod

While I was driving out to the Veterinarian office yesterday with Arnie, I was doing my darndest not to think about Arnie. So I sat thinking about the first memories I have of my sixty-two years.

My mother used to say I could swim before I could walk, which could possibly be true. I grew up a mere 5-minute walk from the ocean, on Cape Cod.

Baby MB!

Looking back I think I was tremendously lucky because from Memorial Day to Labor Day, Mom would pack a picnic basket with sandwiches and drinks, and her latest summer novel. She would sit on her beach chair, and we would swim in an area of the beach called the kiddie pool in those early years.

Foggy weather or bright sunshine, we lived at the beach. Peanutbutter and marshmallow fluff was my favorite sandwiches, (still are, although I do not eat them) and I learned that a little sand in our lunch wasn’t a bad thing.

Me and Mel. Check out those chunky baby thighs!

Mom had to tie a rope around my waist to keep me from swimming away from shore. I would see Martha’s Vineyard across the sea and I loved it there, and thought, in all my childish ways, that swimming could get me there!

I learned that the salt on my skin felt wonderful. I learned that Seagulls will dive on you for the smallest potato chip and the waves, and body surfing them was the greatest of fun.

My cousins and their parents would come for vacation and join us on the beach. Uncle George taught me the finer points of swimming, and he would toss us in the air and we would splash into the water! Oh, what fun that was!

Mel and me. I’m the little squirt on the left!

One day I was trying to find beautiful shells, I felt something jagged under my toes! I hobbled up to the blanket leaving a trail of blood in the sand. And yes, I was crying. Uncle George picked me up and carried me to the ocean and rinsed the sand from my foot, then carried me up to the blanket. Mom said I would need to see the doctor about stitches, so Uncle George wrapped a napkin or two around my toe and he carried me all the way back to the house where my dad drove us to the doctor’s office. And yes, I did need stitches. Three if I remember correctly, and then I was bandaged up and told no swimming until the stitches came out! That was (or so it seemed) forever.

However, I made it, and looking back now, and remembering how loved and safe I felt in my Uncle George’s arms makes me so very thankful to have had such a wonderful man in my life.

I can look back, on the earliest years of my life and remember the carefree and beautiful life I had on “Old Cape Cod”.

There are more “Cape Cod Summer Tales” but for today, I will publish this and remember my summers back then with smiles and happiness.

Crazy Monday

I did a lot of running around on Monday. I woke, not feeling my best (don’t worry it’s not Covid, probably an ulcer) and I had no food in the house I could eat. So after dressing, I toddled off to the grocery store, and already at 9:30 AM, the place was jumping with…Tourists. I’m sure many of them don’t think of themselves that way, but those of us who live here year-round look at all those license plates from out of State and groan!

I got foods that are easy on the stomach and then came home, ate a small breakfast, and then scooped up Arnie for yet another Veterinarian appointment. I packed a small snack and off we went.

Arnie is not well. He is slowly going downhill and we decided to do what we can to keep him comfortable during this time. Arnie has had 14 and a half wonderful years! And we have had fourteen and a half wonderful years with him! We have really been blessed! Arnie was and is a truly fantastic boy!

On our way home I decided to get a vanilla shake. You know, coat my stomach, and stuff. Well, a thought struck me. I’ll get that and give Arnie a little.

At the window, I told the girl I planned to give Arnie a little whipped cream. I paid and went to the next window and what do I get handed? A small shake and a small cup of whipped cream for Arnie! And he thought he was the luckiest boy around!

And watching him…I knew was the luckiest girl!

Samsung Galaxy S51~ 5G

For nearly a week I read everything I could about today’s Cell Phones. It had been many years since I last purchased one, and even then, that Cell Phone (the S8) didn’t have everything I needed.

So, I read and read and when I felt I was ready, I went down to our local wireless store and bought the Samsung Galaxy S51 ~ 5G. Here is why:

At the top of my list was the 5G. I’d noticed that my reception on my old phone wasn’t too good and it was getting worse. Why? Well, as they replace the old towers they are putting in 5G Towers and somehow my S8 wasn’t too compatible. I was dropping calls left and right!
The battery life on my S8 was terrible and was getting worse. The S51 has the longest battery life of those I read about.
The camera has:
MAIN CAMERA Quad
48 MP, f/2.0, 26mm (wide), 1/2.0″, 0.8µm, PDAF
12 MP, f/2.2, 123˚ (ultrawide)
5 MP, f/2.4, (macro)
5 MP, f/2.2, (depth)
Features
LED flash, panorama, HDR
Video
4K@30fps, 1080p@30/120fps; gyro-EIS
SELFIE CAMERA
Single
32 MP, f/2.2, 26mm (wide), 1/2.8″, 0.8µm
Features
HDR
Video
4K@30fps, 1080p@30fps
all of which appealed. I am sure it will take me a while to learn to use it.
This model also has two things I still wanted. The ability to plug into my car because I do not have Bluetooth in my car, and a place for a memory card slot, as I have still not figured out the whole cloud system.
The overall layout was much the same as the S8 and I have been able to set it u so it almost looks the same.
Still, I had forgotten how much of a chore it is to set up a new phone.
I had them pour on the Liquid glass, but I still need a good Cell Phone protector. I usually get Otter Boxes, but they do not have what I like for this phone. (So far, the only drawback!)
So, I have had two days to work setting up my pho9ne and so far I quite like it. I simply asked myself honestly what I needed and then went for my best option!

SO I am working each day to learn the new phone and get it set up so it is just right!

Sixteen Years

I noticed today that it is now sixteen years since I started to write Dackel Princess. Where has the time gone? I recall thinking that only three or four people would ever read me, and those people were all related to me.

Here is the LINK to the first entry I made all those years ago

However, over the years I have met so many great people as they found my blog. It really has been a thrill!

It all started with Shubi and then Greta and Fritz. My original three all those years ago.

Shubi, Greta, & Fritz

Shubi was at the end of her time with us, and Greta and Fritz were puppies! Time sure does fly when one is having fun! And these three were so much fun!

Of course, soon Greta took a husband and she brought to us, Arnie & Anneliese. Fritz went to Rainbow Bridge and we got his niece, Lili.

Arnie, Anneliese, & Lili

Of course, Anneliese left us in January, but there is still a lot of doggy love in this house!

During this time I also became an Oma! That is the best yet! Two beautiful and very special people named Savannah and Quinn came into my life. They are the loves of my life, along with my wonderful daughter, Mandy.

So in 16 years, so much has changed, but the love continues and the joy of sharing my life with my family, friends, and my pets continues. Each day presents an opportunity to find something new in life!

So Happy 16th Blogoversary to me!