for fun: Do/Would you still put on all your makeup and decent clothes if you are quarantined

[Lois R]

Hi again, yes, tonight he goes to Sicily!😃

[slidergirl]

Lois - yay for the mattress!!  May it give you nights and nights of comfortable sleep!!

 

My co-worker was 2 hours late coming in today.  She live down in Salt Lake and it did freezing rain all night.  She started coming up and a bunch of people on the Interstate got in sliding around.  She almost was hit by a slider.  She turned around and went home to calm her nerves and wait for it to warm up a little.  Nasty.  But, next week (not this week), we get sun and temps in the upper 40s - just right for Tshirts!!!

 

I'd like the Veneto and Calabria absolutely.  Probably Piedmont - one of my owners went there 2 years ago for a wine class and brought back some amazing bottles.   Lazio for the fish and pesto, but he'd have to do Cinque Terre (and enough people already go there).  The Trentino-Alto Aldige area could be fun.  Great scenery in the Dolomites, interesting history from the wars, good wine (Pinot Grigio rules there) and a distinct Austrian basis for the food.  I found it fun and had some yummy food.  One of our Jury members for bobsled & skeleton lives there and has a vineyard - produced Pinot Grigio for the America's Cup sailing races and did some for our Olympic Winter Games here.  

 

 

[Lois R]

Hi Kat, thanks so much🙂......it definitely feels different than my old one! And it is the first time I have ever had a bed with an adjustable base.

 

[cruisemom42]

I finally FINALLY scored a vaccine appointment!

 

It's not until April 6th but feels so good to have it in my sights. 

 

  

[cruise kitty]

Hi Ladies!  Hope everyone had a happy weekend :)   Melody & Kat, yikes snow again!  glad to hear you made it home safely Kat, nice of them to let you leave early when the weather was so bad, bet you are super looking forward to some thawing out :)

 

Lois, congrats on the new bed!   Hope it's nice & comfy :)   It was me who asked about your CA trip, hopefully you'll get to do it someday soon.  

 

Cynthia, super congrats on scoring a vaccine appointment!  On your way to in person shopping ;)   & more important, being able to visit with your family & friends :)

 

had a good weekend, went to a very nice out door dinner on Friday night with the kids, & then brunch today with one of my daughters...  drank too many mimosas lol, but it's been over a year so we indulged :)

 

have a great week everyone!

 

-Debbie

[Lois R]

10 hours ago, cruisemom42 said:

I finally FINALLY scored a vaccine appointment!

 

It's not until April 6th but feels so good to have it in my sights. 

 

  

Good morning, congrats on the appt......April 6 is really not that far away🙂

[slidergirl]

Congrats on the appointment Cynthia!  

 

20 more days of the job and I am officially done for the season.  I think I'll play around this Summer, going camping, maybe some semi-major things around the house.  I have plenty of time before I have to decide if I want to come back next Winter or totally retire.  I just can't see myself retired yet.  

 

A totally boring day here at work!!  Boss left at 2:30 so she could drop off an owner's new skis to get the bindings mounted on them before he comes back on Friday.  My only check-in got here around noon - the condo was ready so I let them in instead of making them wait until 2pm (the usual absolute earliest we can do it).  Since then, I've just been basically hanging out, walking the stairs, checking the coffee machine and checking email.  I still have an hour left.  

We have about 30 people here from Lakeland, FL!!!  They try hard to keep the masks on, but sometimes they do forget.  Right now, a bunch are sitting up in the lounge, chatting away.  I figure as long a there is a coffee cup nearby each one, I'm not going to make a fuss.  One gave me and my co-worker $20 each yesterday just for being nice to them when they checked in (we really just said hello, got them a bell cart and showed them the elevator).   

 

I fell asleep before seeing the first 30 minutes of Stanley that I missed.  I'll have to catch up on it later.  There was some good food in that last 30 minutes plus a little interesting history.  I got it on just when they were talking about the Mafia and the assassinations of the judges.  

 

OOTD:  my leggings with the side pockets, my old light blue Athleta hoodie sweater.  Cold (kind of) the rest of this week, but then it turns to Tshirt weather with sunny days and temps in the mid-upper 40s.  Yes, 40s.  But, up here, when the sun is shining, it feels a good 25 degrees warmer!!!

[PurpleHays]

It's always better when the sun is shining!

[purduemom1]

Hello Everyone,  several good posts since I last checked in.
. Kat, glad you made it home safely ( that sounded a bit scary before the road was plowed). Soon you will be a lady of leisure with lots of plans Of course so maybe not so much leisure?

 

. Lois, your new bed sounds like it was worth waiting for. It must be great for reading in bed. Your oven cleaning situation sounds similar to mine  just a few months ago. Same thing, food spilled on the bottom of the oven so I used the cleaning cycle and all was fine afterwards.  Took awhile for the smell to go away though.
 

Good score with the vaccine Cynthia. Soon you will be doing that “happy dance”!

 

Debbie, sounds like you had a great family week end. I think that family time has become so much more precious after the year we have all endured. 
 

Well, finally had the plumber come today and fix a few things that we had been putting off because of the virus. Slowly working thru’ our list. 
 

Happy to hear that the Stanley Tucci series will return. Yes, Veneto would be interesting and I’d like to see the Abruzzo region (east of Rome). However that is not a big tourist region so probably not. 
 

OOTD jeans and a sweater. Our weather is warming up so could be the last time this season that I will wear that sweater. 
Sharon

[Lois R]

Good morning friends.....Melody, my heart goes out to you and all Coloradon's

this morning. and especially to the victims and their families........what a horrific event☹️  I have never been to Boulder but have heard such wonderful things

about it.

 

2 mass shootings in a week.........😢

[sjb317]

44 minutes ago, Lois R said:

Good morning friends.....Melody, my heart goes out to you and all Coloradon's

this morning. and especially to the victims and their families........what a horrific event☹️  I have never been to Boulder but have heard such wonderful things

about it.

 

2 mass shootings in a week.........😢

Yes, another very sad day for America. I read this morning this is actually the 6th mass shooting occurring during the past week.😞

 

Cynthia, I want to add my congratulations on getting a vaccine appointment.  It is such a relief just to get that appointment!  And April 6th is quickly approaching. 🎉🥂

 

Sherri🙂

 

 

[awhfy]

 

this is what our yard looked like this morning after being 68F on Saturday

Edited March 23, 2021 by awhfy

[awhfy]

That snow picture was supposed to post yesterday, never uploaded

 

our oldest daughter & her husband lived in Boulder when they first married, that was their local grocery store. We are all very sad today for the 10 senseless deaths. Melody 

[slidergirl]

2 hours ago, awhfy said:

 

this is what our yard looked like this morning after being 68F on Saturday

Yep, looks familiar to what I had over the weekend.   Question - is that an Aldi pergola??  

 

I am so sick over yet another needless loss of life caused by another needless assault-type rifle.  A ban on them, combined with expanded background checks and "red flag" laws are being bantied about yet again. Those on one side say "get it done NOW" and the other side say "no, takes away our 2nd Amendment rights."  When does one need an assault rifle to go hunting?  Why is a registered rifle or handgun not enough to defend a home?  Sigh.  I just do not understand.   Off soapbox.

 

Day off today.  I'm just going to hang at home since it's supposed to snow off and on today.  Tomorrow I'm going to try to head down to Salt Lake to do some monthly shopping and hopefully make a decision on buying a new tent (I can get my member 20% discount on one right now).  

 

OOTD:  Old Athleta cropped sweats and an older Adidas long sleeve hoodie Tshirt.  

[Anita Latte]

4 hours ago, slidergirl said:

When does one need an assault rifle to go hunting?  Why is a registered rifle or handgun not enough to defend a home?  Sigh.  I just do not understand.  

 

So...I seriously do not want to open a debate...or get into any kind of heated argument. I seriously don't. I'm not trying to open that door...but I do consider myself to be fairly even in being able to talk about hot topics...able that is to try to have a factual, non emotional argument about a topic. This will seem one sided but this is only because I am trying to actually answer these questions as if they were not rhetorical.

 

First...I'd like to state for the record that AR as in AR rifle does not stand for assault rifle. It actually stands for the manufacturer of the rifle...AR stands for Armalite Rifle, which is the manufacturer of the AR-15 rifle that most similar rifles are compared to. For instance, a rifle in that style is an M4. I'm not sure where assault rifle came from in relation to this platform except that it fits the initials...so I can't address how the association came about. 

 

When understanding the name of the manufacturer, which includes the name LITE, you might understand how such a rifle would be used for hunting. Because, quite frankly it's really light! It's a modular type of weapon similar in concept to legos...very easy to piece together. I could most liken it to a gaming computer...which if you know anything about gaming computers and how people build their own, then you could understand the appeal of such things. You have different components that make up the whole...and some parts are more upgradeable than other parts and so rather than having to trash the whole assembly (typical laptop computers), when you want to upgrade a piece of the whole (like when the old graphics card can't handle the new requirements for todays games), you can easily find that firearm part, whatever part you want to upgrade, take apart the firearm and put it back together with the new part.

 

This general platform is also customizable...something about the gas chamber or something else...IDK for sure, except to say that there is a lot of specialized, customizable work that you can do with such a firearm.

 

The other big thing about this style of weapon is the fact that it has very little recoil compared to a similarly sized shot out of a more traditional style of rifle. Where a traditional rifle can easily leave bruises, and for real, if you do a lot of shooting and especially if you happen to be bruise prone, then you can get always get bruises from shooting, but the AR type platform is just flat out much more comfortable to shoot because the design of the rifle does a better job of absorbing the recoil.

 

We are firearms enthusiasts...my Grandfather was a collector...I have military in my family history and in general, I am a woman that decided about 3 years ago when I was walking in my hometown downtown area after dark with my son (I lived there) that I had second amendment rights that I wasn't taking advantage of as we walked past a group of young men that were perfectly fine but had given me qualms from a distance. I purposed to learn to shoot and get my carry license, which I have.

 

And we have AR type weapons. I can shoot those but there is no way at all that I could shoot the the 30-06 that we also have. It would knock me on my rump if I were to try. So I can tell you that the AR type platform extends the ability to hunt to those that would not necessarily be able to handle the firearm that would be necessary to hunt medium to large game...so anyone with a smaller or less fit stature, whether woman or man, young or old, are able to hunt with such a weapon available.

 

And that's my bit of dissertation of why such a weapon is thought to be such a good one for hunting.

 

For home defense, the same standard applies. There are rifles out there...some call them plinkers...that call to mind the old shooting galleries where you hit a target and you make something happen. Line up the empty cans in the back forty and have some target practice. They wouldn't really do too much damage to a person in terms of defense. And the calibers that would be better for home defense are again going to be something that could be a bit more unwieldy for some to use. For defense, you could use them, could use whatever you might need to right? but you could likely, more confidently, use an AR platform.

 

And funny enough...a full-sized handgun is a decent weapon for home defense but there are a few things that would make an AR style rifle superior. Now I understand that statistics are what they are but as crazy as it sounds the stat sited to encourage those of us with a carry license to practice is that only 1 in 8 bullets actually hits its intended target. It's why, if you take a defensive pistol class, which I have, you are encouraged to shoot at center mass. Hollywood goes for the head shot, but center mass is what you have a better shot of hitting. And likely, an adrenal filled attacker could handle at least one if not two bullets depending on the caliber. And that could be very hard to hit if you are the adrenal filled shooter trying to defend your home. Seriously. Hold out a hand gun to shoot and even if you are well practiced, it takes a bit of strength and a steady hand to stay on target, especially with the heft of a full sized handgun extended at arms length while you try to stay on target while someone is rushing you and you are hoping that they don't actually knock that weapon out of your hands.

 

And that quite frankly is where the rifle is superior. You can get a really good grip on that rifle. You have three points of contact...shoulder and two hands. Rather than the weapon being extended away from your body, it's almost like you are gripping it INTO your body. And generally the long barrel really helps in closer quarters because as they say, in a defensive position...it's not like target practice where you are sighting in your target with all the time in the world. That long barrel is as good a site as any in close quarters...and quite frankly...if you were a woman...defending your home, you are a lot more intimidating with that AR style rifle than any handgun.

 

Now just to be clear...I am a proponent of firearm safety. I have strong strong opinions on the topic of safety and my own ideas for how the world could be a safer place in the implementation of gun safety, but I don't believe that is an appropriate topic here.

 

Anyway...like I opened. I'm not looking to debate. I KNOW there are two sides to the story. My post here was to address one side only to try to offer an explanation to someone who literally wrote, I don't understand. I don't think I was on a soap box...I tried to avoid any rant tone...I was shooting for informative. No pun intended.

 

Peace.

[cruise kitty]

Hi Ladies, 

 

just sick over all the shootings, haven't we had enough death in the last year?  

 

Sharon, good to hear from you again, & it must feel good to slowly work your way through that to do list, we need to get motivated & finish up some projects around here.

 

Kat, good luck on your tent shopping, & thanks for the reminder, I need to use my 20% before it expires...  I even have a little gift card for REI, so I will head over to their website...

 

Lois, how is the new bed doing?

 

Melody, love your snow photos, but I bet you are super ready for some springlike weather :)

 

Sherri, I hadn't heard about it being 6,  it's just awful :(

 

need some serious motivation lol, not sure why, but laying in bed for 3 days straight sounds really good right now... need a kick in the pants to get some work done ;)

 

have a good evening everyone :)

 

edit to add:  Anita, thanks for your detailed info, the gun issue is a tough one for me, on the one hand I lost my only brother in a mass shooting about 23 years ago, but also my SIL is a police officer who is also an award winning marksman...

Edited March 23, 2021 by cruise kitty

[Lois R]

Debbie, I am so sorry about your brother........((((((((hugs to you)))))))))).................

 

So far, I have slept pretty well on the new bed.  I think I am realizing I love the adjustability!........

Maybe I as I am getting older sleeping on an angle is more comfortable........(I am keeping the

head area raised  a bit rather than all the way down).

[cruise kitty]

35 minutes ago, Lois R said:

Debbie, I am so sorry about your brother........((((((((hugs to you)))))))))).................

 

So far, I have slept pretty well on the new bed.  I think I am realizing I love the adjustability!........

Maybe I as I am getting older sleeping on an angle is more comfortable........(I am keeping the

head area raised  a bit rather than all the way down).

 thanks Lois, it's been a long time, but when I hear of a shooting on the news, I always think of how there's a family watching the report not knowing that their family member was there.

 

On a happier note, your bed sounds great!   We have Steve's bed head raised with rolled up beach towels lol, not very classy, but helps with acid reflux, need to order him an adjustable bed :)

 

about to head out for a run & maybe even a little hike to try & shake out my mopey mood :)

[slidergirl]

Debbie - I am sorry for your loss of your brother.  Any loss is devastating, but from a mass shooting has to be beyond.

 

Anita - I did know that AR did not stand for "assault rifle."   I am from a hunting family.  We always went out to try to bag a deer for winter meat.  That's been passed down to my great nieces and nephews now.  So I am not anti-gun.  But, I am for responsible ownership which includes registration and classes and not allowing semi-auomatic or automatic weapons and high-volume magazines to be sold to the general public.  And, like a 72-hour psych hold, I believe firearms should be removed from someone who is reported to be a danger to themselves and others.   And, can someone immediately get an AR-15 pistol with stabilizing arm brace ready to shoot someone like they could grab their handgun?  

After having someone attempt to rob me, I had people ask me why I didn't get a gun. A co-worker even offered to take me to a range to teach me how to use a pistol.  I didn't take them up.  I have my reasons. 

 

I went ahead and bought the tent tonight!!!  Ended up with a really great deal because I used my 20% member discount on it and applied my minuscule dividend (I bought too much on sale last year, I guess) to the purchase.  Now, I am thinking of a new camping mattress.  The one I'm looking at would cost $179, which blows my mind that I'm willing to pay that much.  But, with my owners' gratuities, I can do it with my tent.  I just had to buy it separately as the discount would have been applied to it and not the tent.   I have to seriously start getting all my camping stuff organized - it's just sitting in a jumble in the living room because I just couldn't do anything with it last summer because I had no energy.  I'm going to have one bada$$ campsite, I think!!!  

[purduemom1]

Debbie, I too am very sorry about your brother’s untimely death. I can imagine that you and your family miss him a lot.

 

Anita, I know very little about the various types of guns-thank you for the explanation. As others have expressed, I feel very sad about not only this senseless shooting but all the others as well.
 

Kat, well you are going to be one happy and comfortable camper. As for the mattress, my thought is that as we age, comfort becomes very important. Besides, you won’t have much fun on your trip if you don’t gat a good night’s sleep!
 

Lois, speaking of sleeping, sounds like you are really glad you chose that adjustable bed. 
 

Melody, more snow? I hope a warm up is on the way.

 

Went to Costco this morning and couldn’t help noticing the difference compared to last year at this time. No mad rush for the TP-in fact no more limit on purchases. Didn’t seem as if anyone was stocking up as if they were  going into hibernation. Also big supplies of things like hand sanitizer in gallon bottles, masks etc.

 

Tomorrow we meet with our CPA. What fun.😏

Sharon

[awhfy]

Debbie, my sincere condolences on the loss of your brother, time doesn’t make it easier. 
 

Snowing again. Melody

[slidergirl]

3 hours ago, awhfy said:

Debbie, my sincere condolences on the loss of your brother, time doesn’t make it easier. 
 

Snowing again. Melody

I've got a nice day, but snow the rest of the week...

 

Anita - I meant to say your comments were well thought out.  I just have some past experience with gun violence that color my thoughts now.  

 

Sharon - good luck with the CPA!!!  May you find a wealth of deductions!!!

 

I have to do a "above and beyond" task for one of the owners today.  Even though it's my day off...  It's not a big thing, but it's right at 3 in the afternoon, which blows going down to the Valley.  Oh well.  I really don't need to go spend a lot of money at Trader Joe's...

 

OOTD:  What else?  black joggers with my "Alligator Girl" flannel shirt.  Most likely a baseball hat today, too. 

[sjb317]

Debbie, I want to add my condolences, I can’t begin to imagine what you and your family went through.😞

 

Sherri

[Anita Latte]

First off...I also want to add my condolences Debbie. I've never had anything close to such a tragedy happen so close to home. I can't even. Hugs.

 

Second...I'd just like to express appreciation to everyone participating and lurking here for the civil discussion in response to my post. It feels like our society and country has forgotten that it's okay for everyone to have unique and differing opinions. We don't all have to agree on every topic. But lately it feels like dissenting opinion is being...punished? persecuted? beaten? IDK...it's all so crazy. And anyway, I just want to share that I'm happy that this space that Kat started for people to talk is open enough to letting voices speak without repercussion for voicing a potentially unpopular opinion. For every negative that people experience there is usually a positive...and I guess I fall into that category because I am personally connected to events where firearms have saved lives. It's a complicated issue.

 

One last note on the topic...Kat, yes, someone can almost as easily grab an AR style weapon as a handgun. The hand grip for the AR for the shooting hand is EXACTLY like a typical handgun. Your non-dominant hand holds the weapon somewhere along barrel area (I don't know the exact terms). It's not a hinderance for the firearm to be bigger...in some ways it could be easier as there would be more leeway with the grip of the non-dominant hand making it easier to get into position. Proper technique with an AR has a low ready position from which you literally turn the weapon as if on a pivot point, like the hands of a clock and the turn ends when the butt stock hits position on your shoulder. Human bodies have enough compensations that there is a range of places on the shoulder and varying degrees of "hunching" over if necessary but in a defensive stance, as I was taught, the more likely scenario is simply point and shoot where you aren't using sights but are still aiming. People are pretty accurate at pointing at what they aim to point at with their hands when they are looking at the intended target and not their hands. 

 

Kat...is that alligator shirt manufactured like that? or did someone make that from a tee shirt? It's really well done. Kind of reminds me of the jackets and patches I see at metal festivals. LOL. Some I've seen take a favorite band tee shirt and put that on the back of the jacket and then put the patches all around. Is that stiff at the graphic? Or is that like tee shirt material?

 

Anything you can do to make camping more comfortable is worth the expense. Especially if you aren't backpacking in and plan to spend a few nights out. 

[cruise kitty]

Hi Ladies, thank you for all the very kind thoughts & words :)  It's an awful way to lose someone, & that's the last I'll say on that.  

 

Anita, I agree, it's nice having a place where we can all share different views & still be respectful & empathetic....  my gosh the world needs more of that right now.  :)

 

 

On some super happy news, about to pick up grandson for first sleepover in oner a year!   

 

-Debbie