ITZA VINTER VUNDERLAND, SVEN!

"Away to the window I flew like a flash,

Tore open the shutters and threw up the sash,

The moon on the breast of the new-fallen snow

Gave the lustre of mid-day to objects below,"

-- A Visit from St. Nicholas

by Clement Clarke Moore

Central Arizona highlands, February 28, 2018:

MARCHING TOWARD OBLIVION

I hit a new low in my weight loss game this morning.

Down 15 pounds since early February.

For those concerned about my health I should add that the reduction in my size has slowed considerably in recent days.

I had been concerned about a quite low blood pressure, however, and had wondered several days ago if I should cut down on my blood pressure medication.

I gave my cardiologist's office a couple of weeks of readings this morning and heard from them this afternoon.

Yes, cut the Carvedilol in half, came the advice and see how it's going in another week.

I had already slightly increased another med I take for blood thinning and the reading had begun to tick back up as of this morning.

So, you think it's easy losing weight, do you?

When you're being treated for as many malfunctions of the body as I am, it's more of a balancing act than you might think.

Ah, yes, I know.

I've reached the age where we sit around talking about all of our aches and pains and maledictions of the body.

Like all the other old men I figure I've earned it so just sit there and listen!

I know who cares about me anyway!

ARIZONA SNOW

Yes, it does snow in Arizona occasionally.

Not often or much where I live.

Though I do remember the day I opened our bookstore to the public back in 1996.

We had been preparing for it for weeks since the space we rented had only bare concrete floors and, at first, no electricity.

With the great help of SWMBO's son Scott we built it from the floor up.

But the night before it was scheduled to open we had a huge snowstorm that dumped half a foot or so of snow on the area.

SWMBO didn't want me to venture out the next day as we lived in Prescott then, about half a dozen miles from where the store was located and she was afraid I'd have an accident or get stuck.

But I went anyway.

We only had a handful of customers that first day and took in around 30 dollars.

But later on it became a going concern, at least for about 7 years.

That was one of the last large snowstorms that I remember in our area of Arizona.

(And I always have to remind readers that we are not in Phoenix, we're about 80 miles north of there at an elevation of about 5 thousand feet.)

So we do get snow, once in awhile.

This was yesterday and even people like me, who grew up in North Dakota only about 50 miles from Canada, have to get out and snap a few pictures.

I took this one of my neighbor's house across the street and gave it to him to either post on his refrigerator or send to his relatives back East.

And yes that is a tent to the left behind that pickup.

I joked with him that if his wife had thrown him out he could sleep on our sofa.

But he said he had put it up yesterday and planned to try it out by sleeping in it last night.

(I never said everyone who lives here is totally sane!)

THE FRIDAY FUNNIES

OMG!

I had forgotten what day this is.

Where's my weekly reminder?

Ah, there it is.

Ahem . . uh . . well . . uh . . yes.

Let's get on with it shall we?

Well, there you go, Gentle Readers.

A little late but unbowed.

I hope you found something in there to amuse you.

And I hope that you'll have a sidesplittingly boisterous weekend, full of feasting and frivolity.

Always remember though, keep laughing!

Here, kitty-kitty . . .

(Oh, ye-gods . . .)

TBT - THE GIRLS

Gentle Readers, on this Throwback Thursday I thought I'd show you some pictures of the beautiful women I've been lucky enough to share my life with through the years and decades.

First, the love of my life, Judith aka Judy aka SWMBO.

(We always loved those black turtlenecks, didn't we?)

Next come Judy's two daughters, Caryn and Gayle aka The BRD.

Hey!  I even got in this picture, reflected in the window above them!

Next comes Caryn's daughter, Lesly aka The One Who Could Have Been a Movie Star!

She looks a lot like her mother, doesn't she?

And then there's Lesly's sister, Christina, Christy to me.

Not a bad looking brood.

Here's the whole group in one shot.

Count me blessed!

WEIGHT LOSS WEDNESDAY

If you're interested . . .

Top weight:  220.9 lbs  (February 2, 2018)

Current weight:  207.7 lbs  (February 21, 2018)

Along with my weight being down, so is my blood pressure, right at the edge of low blood pressure.

Conferred with nurses at my doctor's office yesterday.

They said to drink more water, keep a b.p. log and check with them in a week.

Might need to back off some on my Carvedilol (blood pressure drug).

TBU (To Be Updated).

Also if you're interested, the new banner picture above is of Horseshoe Bend in Glen Canyon, northern Arizona.

I wonder why they named it that.  (wink-wink, nudge-nudge)

WIND

The famed Prescott Valley wind is blowing like a wild beast tangled in a net today.

(I found that simile on the World Wide Web . . I'm not nearly that poetical.)

I had read yesterday that it was coming but this is the strongest it has blown since we have lived here.

When I woke this morning I first heard it.

Then a bit later as I chatted up SWMBO she told me to look out at the patio.

This is what I saw.

Yes, the wind had picked up one corner of that outdoor astroturf and flipped it along with a metal bowl of rocks that were meant to hold it down.

So, yes, the wind is blowing and it's forecast to continue all day until around 5 this afternoon.

I have since picked up all the spilled stones, replaced them in the bowl and parked it on one of the patio chairs at the corner of the carpet.

We'll see how long that lasts.

Meantime, the whirligig is getting a workout.