⏳ ending the IVth month

 ⏳or real close

sun and spring for sure. enjoy the warmth. revel in the days

live in the moment

I use the expression but I'm not sure that this ends up being what I Do or Accomplish

sounds good

🎀 and in ...

  🎀  glorious sunshine. hope springs eternal

🍁 on the 27 the of the IV th

 🍁 a bout of increasingly spring ish weather is in the offing

apologies. day blossomed from this AM. SUMMER but cool

🐯 again !

 🐯 .... closing out another month

whew. jetted by that one

we are in spring. today is a cooler version. duller and pregnant w/ rain

🌅 looking forward is ....

 🌅 ..... the ticket

a sombre day out the window as I type. 
positive notes. grass is greening. crocus came out and seemed happy

🦠 .... ' we all live in a ......

 🦠...yellow submarine ...
or so the song goes

on April the 24 . coffee, typing and dark outside
and for sure the temperature indicates spring 
I think we hit mid 60 s this afternoon

wondrous day, makes you believe in Santa Claus

💤 April 22 in the year 2025

 💤 ....... is the apt emoji b/c I took ' ZZZZZ sleep ' gummies ' Slept thru
However,I'm still groggy

' boro is dull but the sun wants thru

The backpack dilemma. OK, watched a YouTube video on my large backpack, Targus Voyager 1.
yes, loads of pockets and sleeves. Discovered that the protective zipped pocket lined w / foil was NOT for film etc
BUT a cooler / keep warm bag [ alright, it took me 15 years to figure that out ]

of course, now I am leaning toward, taking the bigger backpack.
a) the recommended backpacks have these storage spaces
b) the biggest pack pack might help while we are transiting in England

👁 ' what it is bro '

 👁The emoji 👁️ represents a single human eye looking forward. It's different in shape and style compared to the pair of eyes emoji 👀, which are more rounded and look to one side. The single eye emoji is also commonly used with the mouth emoji 👄 to create the "It is what it is" face: 👁️👄👁️.

sharing 
coffee in hand and typing. hello ether. are you receiving ??????? 

further. the 2 nd hack for the Survivor backpack. I mentioned the shock cord web modification, sort of " OK "

Next: two clips are now available slightly above the side pocket or water bottle carrier. Their purpose was to prevent the water bottle from falling over or out
THEN discovered a water bottle [ former ' ice tea ' container ] that sits quite nicely thank you, w / out needing a top lacing 

🎴 as April flows along

 🎴yes. we got rain
but the season has turned. less uncomfortable. get out weather is here 

follow up. I tried to ' hack ' my backpack. It is a Survivor 25 [ L ] from Regatta.
this is called an EDC [ everyday carry ] pack.
I was travelling to England and was using a dedicated Electronics backpack. Of course, compartments galore, padded and attachpoints for accessories. And heavy.

I saw a guy w/ a EDC approx 25 L [ I didn't know those terms at the time ]
While in England, yes, the Survivor was on sale for $ 18. I was going to use it all the time
Fast forward and not really.

As a last attempt to take this to England. [ see, this was what was supposed to happen ] I tried a hack to make the Survivor slightly more utilitarian [ and not heavy ]

the Survivor came w/ a shock cord loose web on the front of the pack. Meant for a jacket or wet item [ obviously, it could dry there ]. Problem was, all items tend to fall thru, eventually.
Solution, use a large  [long ] Zip tie to form a frame and make the bottom of the web stronger and more substantial

The Zip tie is strong but the way that I zipped the black Zip made the ' new improved ' shock cord netting - not stretchy enough. Meaning the space does not expand much or accept odd shapes

Today, is hack # 2. Stronger webbing but increased flexibility.  

We shall see said the Zen Master

The hack ' re do '. Alright, stayed w/ the heavy Zip tie. But, this time, I left the ends free ( not joined in a big loop.

I found a light shock cord and threaded the light line thru the Zip tie ends  Thus, a relatively stiff lower frame for the web net and flexy sides ( allowing stretch )

Untested. And all the while, I thought ' R U taking the computer backpack ( yes, like before ) '

🚅 and the 19 the of April is here

 🚅 ... we did get rain
plus the skies look threatening again. Mild temperatures, tho '

🏣 April the 17 of 2025

 🏣 ..... the ' boro reports

we will be sunny it seems w/ temperature doing a 50 + / - a bit

however rain moves in for the Fri / Sat of Easter

hang tough, elbows up and .... fight ,fight 

Pain follow up. Yesterday was Ibuprofen free. Did the wall stretch and w/ a bit of discomfort finished the day

This AM. Wall stretch [ still sore ] back to bed, stretch a bit
when I got up, wall stretch, and minimal discomfort

We shall see said the Zen Master

📅 nope the 16 and April

 📅 .... an icon from the display

further
the new exercise. today, Ibuprofen free. Usually, one pill in the morning [ or 2 ] to start, mostly pain free.
but. this morning two sessions standing and one while in bed. I believe that this will be a pill - free day

The DR. confirmed the YouTube diagnosis. ' can't put my socks on syndrome ' or hip arthritis

scheduled for X ray and Ultrasound.

sunny and tending to warm and rain in 2 days

💡 15 of 04

 💡' boro report. no whining. temperature is around 45 + / - Yes, Gray out there 

follow up. Dr T .. is going to see me today. The topic hip and groin pain or ' I can't put my socks on ' syndrome

BUT a day or so ago, a YouTube video said ' try one of these two stretches for pain relief '
and this would be video # 5 saying the same thing

Last evening
Up to the wall. forearm braces the body and push your off side hip into the wall. Yepper, hurt a bit
but I stepped away from the wall, greatly reduced pain. Un - freaking - believable !

now to be fair, the lady said that this is an ' unloading ' of the stress. Not a strengthening move

BUT what a relief 

🌉 aprilus 14

 🌉 ... in the  ' boro
dull and wet. all day. but warming c.f. the last two weeks

thus
the Duet experiment I.e. using a table was a flop

decision then. carry the Duet and use as a tablet / laptop or take this Chromebook clamshell

Advantages to the clamshell
this is our everyday machine that both M .. and I use.
would appear to be faster and functionally superior

Why ? don't know. the Duet has a ARM structure that was supposedly suitable for an app friendly machine

On the health front. I'm booked to see the family Dr. I have been putting up w/ groin pain / hip stiffness aching for a month

Oops! this condition is likely hip osteo - arthritis, diagnosed via You Tube

🧱 ... just another brick ...

 🧱 ... in the wall or post # 4 407

sunny in the ' boro. branches are still

our temperature will be 45 - 50 for several days  

" hello testing testing

 so this is an attempt on Sunday morning to use the Duet as a tablet thinking that at the airport, a tablet could be handy and a tiny bit lighter maybe.

 The alternative means carrying the clam shell Chromebook that we use normally. 

 oh well we're just going to give it "

Above in quotes, is a dictated script that needed lengthy and painful editing. Too, painful

evaluating this attempt ......

crapola in spades

and during editing, I was reminded that typing on the tablet is barely easier or fruitful than typing on our Pixel phones

☔ Aprile is now at 12 th

 ☔ ....... or past the third of days

' boro gets the symbol for rain
overcast and dreary looking

BUT no snow

🧋 celebrate or ....

 🧋.... languish

every day is good, somehow

even in the sleety gray, the snow is cleansing [ alright, that s pushing it a bit ]

🎀 slugging it out

 🎀 ... we will get spring
takes time
' winter stays long, this high up ...'

at least there is sun but cold ish

wind is still

🌨 ... this could be the last time ...

 🌨 ... oh, no, oh oh , no ( Rolling Stones )

a dusting for the ' boro
gray out there and flurries

brilliant sunshine. cold lively wind for the afternoon

⏳ .. the moving finger

 ⏳... writes
and having writ moves on ...

sunny BUT snow is in the forecast. Boo !

🍁 VI of IV

 🍁flying around the yard

I put up baby flags in Tim Horton s cups for decoration. Sort of - All Canadian

' boro, outside is struggling to be spring. the light is there but cold ish

A follow up of .... well, aging in place

long ago, the decision was made [ by me ].
we did not throw away or sell or trade the living room sofa set. four pieces of teak furniture circa 1975. the reasoning was sound that you can no longer obtain real wood furniture [ well, not at reasonable prices ]. the sofa and two seater had removable cushions like seat cushions.
so, twice in the past, we recovered and or replaced the cushions. 
the cost was 1500 - 2000 dollars. fabric was good quality and great colour and pattern

of course, the current estimate based on 2004, allowing for Covid and the intervening years - $ 2 500 to 3 000.

instead, we ordered Amazon sponge slab one piece bottoms w/ attractive neutral blue covering. for back rests etc. I re - cut and shaped the original sponge to suit us. we used the Amazon cushion coverings which were all stretchy and able to take on the form that we wanted.

Well, all was good. UNTIL, we've realized that we are aging in place [ badly ]. I had ordered slabs that were 3 inches thick. THEN, we needed extra height using pads and cot mattresses. this change was to aid in getting up from the sofas
 Alright. but the slabs would slide on the false bottoms that we made.

the final solution, re - order the long slab [ three seater ] in the 6 inch height. the plan was then to re - cut the three seater, 3 inch slab and re - use the re - modelled slab under the existing 3 inch two seater slab.
the results was a three seater with a 6 inch height, check that
a two seater w/ two 3 inch height slabs.

The best laid plans .... turns out the two seater has a 7 plus inch height. ????? OK haven't a clue what happened there

overall, the new arrangement works. E Z to get up. our knees can't do the get up part w / out the extra height. the look is, not unattractive, and functional

the cost. in total for the tree slabs just under $ 900. of course, had I originally, got the 6 inch height for both sofas, maybe just under $ 700. 
but we couldn't know how we would need to re - adjust the height

the back rest cushions and arm rest etc are a little different for personal taste, eclectic but not outlandish. now, add in another $ 150 for these coverings

AND a not so intended consequence, at the QMH there a new floor cushions, that everybody loves. I didn't know what to do w/ the four [ covered ] cushions that were spare from the original set. 
I hesitantly, took them to the QMH. I planned to subtly suggest that these cushion could come in handy, someday.
So, someone helped carry the cushions in,  everyone grabbed their favourite size and sat down on the floor
Ta Da ! total utility 

 

🏣 Aprilius 5

 🏣 ..... part of the up and down of our weather currently, we are gray and damp
the bonus is a rise in temperature to close to 50 F

follow up. we are paying for broadcast TV [ yes, the expensive option ] and Netflix and Prime

unfortunately, our major source of entertainment and contact w/ the world

to that end we watched ' Hope St ', a soap opera, in an Northern Irish port town. 

we are slightly spoilt having watched some our favourite UK programming

🌀 ... unexpected activity ....

 🌀 is the notification
the home security panel noted a front window opened at 2 P
obviously, the system didn't get the memo ' it was close to 70 F in the afternoon '

... let in the sun and warm !!

the ' boro now

cool and sunny

🥻 III of the IV

 🥻 ... and the rains came. we were deluged and more

almost afraid to tour the basement

PLUS we will touch 60 F this afternoon 

Follow up: a report tracking weight control since Fe 9 / 25 which started at # 181.6. This morning, I recorded # 175. I' ve limited bread to once a week or less. However, corn, rice and noodles ( esp. Rice and Beans noodles and Vermicelli) are staples

AND I get beer daily if I want 

Thus. A slow march over two months. 

🈲 II of the IV

 🈲 has anything settled down ?
what does that even mean ?

' boro weather. still gray out the window. loud sounds from the street [ wind gusts]
AND we have much rain due for the day

🧝 aprieaus 1 st

 🧝the Father of Life brought us ice that falls. and today bright sunshine and cold ....
yes. its a fooly for sure