It was 118 Today and, well, my mini Icemaker went on the fritz and quit working so it's a good thing we got the New Fridge and it's making Ice, up to 10 lbs. daily. *Whew* The mini Machine was only $99 so not worth repairing since I'm sure replacement would be cheaper and we don't need it now anyway. It served it's purpose and now we know they don't last all that long, but, I felt we did get our Money's worth out of it, so, no regrets either on purchasing it 'til we could replace our Fridge and get one that's Icemaker worked again. It's invaluable to have an Icemaker in Arizona during the Spring and Summer Months especially. And the Fridge filters the Water it uses for Ice and the Ice Water functions. The Ice Water Pitcher auto fills as well and that's been invaluable, saves on buying as much Bottled Water.
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I did get more Work done in The RV Garage Mahal this Morning before Heat of the day sets in. Brought in some Keeper Items that had been in the Main House and had no Placement in here. So I'm setting up Displays of them in there instead and decluttering more in the Main House. It's a Work in Progress, but I am making some headway and decided to just pace myself in smaller increments to chip away at all the Projects, that as a Whole, can easily Overwhelm me. If I do smaller Projects with consistency, then eventually it makes a bigger impact over Time. So this is the Method I'm switching to now becoz otherwise I become paralyzed with the enormity of it all. Coz it's still a LOT. But, I'm now thinking, well, I'm Retired, so, I am on Retirement Time to do it really, no hurries, no worries, what does it matter how long it takes?
Enjoying the Moments of Progress or getting a new Vignette done is encouraging after all. And I am going to be more Editorial and Curated about what is Kept, I have to be. So, as I methodically do each thing in smaller increments, I'm assessing each possession more critically as well. Do I LOVE it? Do I Need it? Do I Enjoy it and it brings me Joy? Have I used it? Does it have any Purpose now? Could I use the Money more than retaining it? Would it be be beneficial to someone else if I just Donate it? I'm kinda past the Throwing Out stuff, that's easy to rid yourself of what isn't even of Donation Quality and should just be tossed and quickly disposed of. I have no problems discarding what is no longer functional, broken, worthless, of no use, or just worn out. The recently caput Icemaker went straight into the Recycle Bin of the Trash. It freed up Space for some stacking Vintage Tupperware Bowls now.
Yeah, I Sold Off a lot of my Collectible Antique Bowls and went back to finding the Vintage Tupperware at Chazzas to use. I Loved my Antique Bowls and kept a scant few favs, but they are worth more now and I'm clumsier now in my Old Age. So, having plastic Vintage Bowls I like made more sense for everyday use. Plus, this Kitchen has no Display Space for Antique Kitchenware Collectibles like previous Properties had. So, if I couldn't even enjoy Displaying them, then I might as well just Sell them and Cash Out on their Investment. Vintage and Antique Kitchenware is still an Easy Sell. The Young folks actually like the Look of it all when they're Designing a Retro Kitchen Space with their Modern Spin of Yesteryear's Kitchens. It's Nostalgic in a good and functional way. And the Thrill of Hunting for Tupperware stacking Nesting Bowls in the Colors I wanted was enjoyable to me.
For some reason I was like a Fiesta Ware and Tupperware Magnet when the Laws of Attraction hit the Universe and I put out the Signals to procure more of it for me. I seemingly stumbled into finding more of it than I even Needed or Wanted then, so I've Resold quite a bit and Profited off that too, Win-Win. We use both a lot at Home so it was a practical Solution to a transition I was making for Kitchen Supplies we'd Need and Use a lot. I also Scored enuf Vintage Silverplate Forks now that there is no longer a shortage. I don't know what the Family was doing with the Forks, but we never seemed to have enuf. I was growing weary of going on Fork Hunting Expeditions to find out where they were if not in the Sink to be Washed or in the Cutlery Drawer to be Used? I knew who the most likely Offenders were and both of them haven't been Home now in Ages, so, no Fork shortages for now. *Winks*
Princess T deadpanned one day, "Did you look on the Roof Gramma?" Coz... at the Villa McManse we did discover that her Brother had been tossing some of his dirty dishes onto the Roof!!! He lived on the 2nd Floor MIL Apartment up there and it had a Galley Kitchen with a Window overlooking part of the lower Roof and Courtyard. And Crazy Boy had been just tossing them out the fucking Window rather than Washing them!!! Yes, I made him get out the Window onto the Roof and retrieve them... which was a Death defying feat for a Teenager, but I was just that Mad about it... and it was only humorous in the retelling of that Story. When you got Crazy Folk at Home, anything and everything is possible and you can't make that shit up!!! *LOL and Winks* Tho' she was semi-joking, I did take a glance up on the Roof over the Art Studio portion of the Home he now Occupies, didn't see any Forks... or dirty Dishes. *Whew*
Today we're gonna get another BOGO Free Butter Honey Chicken Breakfast Biscuit from WHATABURGER coz I have another Coupon and they're really good. I haven't been to a WHATABURGER in Years but they built a New One about a Block from our House and gave us a shitload of Coupons. And Honestly that Biscuit was excellent and now I'm making Honey Butter at Home. Coz The Man and I have Allergies too and Honey helps the Immune System cope with that and mixing it with your Butter is very flavorful as well. And I have tons of various Honeys and Butter, and even Bee Pollen, so this is my new Favorite thing to blend together at Home to use on Foods. I got the Bee Pollen, 5 oz. of it, on E-Bay from a Supplier in New Jersey, free Shipping and an excellent price. Bee Pollen when I could find it from Local Beekeepers had been more expensive, about twice as expensive for a lot less of it. Now Oddly, tho' I'm allergic to Bee Stings, the Pollen and Honey doesn't cause any Negative Reactions.
I realized I liked Bee Pollen and it was helping with Allergies during Allergy Season when they'd sprinkle some of it on my Acai Fruit Bowls with a drizzle of Honey too over the Fruit on top of the Acai Smoothie Sorbet. And Hot Honey I like over my Bacon with some Pepper Flakes sprinkled on top too with Maple Syrup Blended as a Bacon drizzle. You can Thank me later if you've never tried that. I started liking that when I had my first "Bacon But Different" at SNOOZE and then FIRST WATCH now has a similar version they call their "Million Dollar Bacon". LOVE it and it's terribly addictive, I must Warn you!!! If you're already a Bacon Lover this elevates it to a higher level of flavor profile to Die for. I get my Hot Honey from The Son's DOLLAR TREE Location for $1.25. A lot of the popular Hot Honey Brands, like MIKE'S HOT HONEY, are expensive {around $7-$19} and this is just as good actually for a whole lot less.
I'm a Honey Snob tho' and I will Stand Tall to buy some Gourmet Honeys from all over the Globe or from Local Beekeepers. Honey can be as varied as the Flowers and Plants that the Bees Harvest it from and various parts of the World or the different parts of the U.S.. Best for Allergies to get a Local Honey to build up Immunity from whatever is Blooming in your areas tho'. I have Honey for Days here at Home Hoarded Up coz we use a lot of it. For some reason it rarely, if ever, elevates my Diabetic Numbers for Blood Sugars, which is good. Anyway, looking forward to our Honey Butter Chicken Breakfast Biscuit we'll be eating within the Hour after I drop The Son off at Work. Princess T was dropped off at her Work about an Hour beforehand. Then The Man and I will be Footloose and Fancy Free coz those are the only Two Kiddos here now until whenever the other Two come back. The Young Prince claims it will be before August... The Daughter, who knows when?
She's clearly found a place to stay that does allow Mando to hang around or be there and that's her prerogative as a Grown Ass Adult Woman. She knows how we feel about it and we're not budging on that. I don't Care how much he Promises he's a Changed Man, those Type of Men never Change who can't control their Temper and inappropriate abusive Behaviors. If you've Lived that long and not Changed already, you ain't Changing no matter what Bullshit you Promise. And Word was that is why he went to Prison in the first place... so... whether or not they expunged it after 13 Years I don't Care, I don't Trust him coz he showed his inability to Control his Temper here on our Property when he was just a Guest. Who does that except someone totally Out of Control?! Which just isn't a Safe Person to be around IMO.
And the fact he got Mouthy with Three Family Members on our Property was evidence to me that he has not got Control over himself, his Mouth, or possibly his Actions, that his Mouth began confrontations with other people. I don't want that around, period. Even if he was never Foolish enuf to get Mouthy around me or The Man. And I didn't want my Son or Grandson catching Charges if he started getting Physical and they had to Hand him his Ass, which, each of them could and would. They never start Fights but they can Fight really well and will end one with a flourish. And he got Mouthy with our Two Neighbors T.J. and Rob, so they didn't want him around their Property anymore either even tho' he'd endeared himself to their Elderly Parents as well and went to Church with them. Hey, you can be Churchy and still be a House Devil, I've seen it often enuf in Criminal Case Files to know they can sometimes be some of the worst hypocrites behind closed Doors when they think nobody Sees or Knows how they really are.
We did Environmental Cleanup after Breakfast, well, I did, The Man just sat in the Shade. Then we turned it in at the Recycle Center coz I had a Truck Bed full of Bagged Aluminum Cans. Then we went to CRAB 99 for Lunch coz we had that One Pound of Shrimp we'd Won last time spinning the Wheel, we Won another Pound of it Today spinning the Wheel! This time we tried the Lemon Pepper Shrimp, it was excellent. We also got the Hot Wing Bucket in the Cajun and the Lemon Pepper flavors, it's 20 Wings and they're so good. The Man got his Clam Chowder too coz he Loves their Clam Chowder. We had lots of leftovers to bring Home to Share with The Son and Princess T when they get Home from Work. I was glad to Win another Pound of their Shrimp Boil, it's so good and comes in a variety of Flavors and you can choose Head Off and Deveined, which is my preference.
I'll claim the other Free Pound of Shrimp at the end of another Month when $$$ is low. *Winks and Smiles* Their prices are reasonable too and the Bucket of Wings is a fav with the Family and is good Hot or Cold. The Staff there are getting to know us even tho' they haven't been Open all that long and are still having their Soft Opening. The Man enjoyed himself being out and about so was in excellent Spirits and a good cooperative Mood. He was a little "Lost" Mentally Today, which, I think shows in his Pix I took, and his Hair and Beard was all Crazy, I'm gonna have to try to convince him to let me Braid it {Hair and Beard}, or put at least his Hair in a Ponytail so it's not looking like he just Invented something or just got off a Pirate Ship. *Smiles* He likes that new 250th America's Birthday Cap I bought for him at our Antique Mall, he almost won't take it off. *LOL*
The Niece just told me she'll be here next Week, she's coming from Texas, to spend some time with us here in Arizona and get a break from her Dad, who she's Caregiver of. It's a Tall Order, I think he has the onset of Dementia and he had a problematic Personality all his Adult Life so he's been often Estranged from his Three Daughters off and on. Their Dear Mother, who was one of my Best Friends, Died many Years ago, far too Young, sometimes the Good Die Young, it makes no sense, but, that's Life sometimes. Anyway, she pities her Dad and he did get Sober, he was an Alcoholic and was Abusive when he Drank. He Served in the Air Force, along with his Wife who was also Active Duty, he did 18 Years and his Wife did 11, and I met them when they lived next to me when all our Children were very Young... in fact, Barb hadn't even had the 3rd Daughter when we 1st met and I hadn't had The Son either yet.
So, our Families Share so much History that we considered each other True "Adopted" Family and all her Kids call The Man and I their Aunt and Uncle, our Kids their Cousins. No Biological Connection but that doesn't matter. They're Closer to us than to Biological Family actually. The Oldest of their Three Daughters is the One I Call "The Niece" here on the Ole' Blog coz she's Closest to us and always kept in Touch over the Years, even when her Two Younger Sisters didn't. The Two Younger ones have had ups and downs in Life and it estranged them from a lot of people they'd once been close to. It happens. The Niece has been trying to reconcile with what Biological Family she has left, but it's hard, coz you can't Change the Family Dynamic and if it's Dysfunctional, it often stays that way. So, sometimes it requires moderating how much time is spent around the actual Family when so much Dysfunction of the Family Dynamic exists and it always ends up being Drama and a Headache. She usually comes here for those Breaks, so that it doesn't BREAK her.
With us she's better understood, it was hard for her Family to even accept that she was a Lesbian, since, she tried to be Straight, she even had Boyfriends in Younger Years. But, it wasn't who she was, even tho' as a Younger Woman she was Stunningly Beautiful, so was what I affectionately called a Lipstick Lesbian. *Smiles* Now she's more Butch and she doesn't Care that she's more Masculine than Feminine. Coz she's no longer trying to keep up Appearances, remain Closeted or Pass as Straight, due to Societies Biases anymore. She spent far too many Years of doing that, she is more comfortable in her own Skin now. I'm really Glad about that and she always knew it was a Non-Issue for our Family.
I've been very Open about how many Family Members we've had for Generations, mostly on the Paternal Side, who were Two Spirit Individuals and Tribal People have no Issues with that. It's only when the White Missionaries came that they tried to make them Believe there was something Wrong with Being Created by the Creator that way. Far too many Religious Brands think you should "Pray the Gay Away", as if that's the way it works. *Huge Eye Roll* Or they Shun or Disown anyone LGBTQ+, as if that's the way it works. *Huge Eye Roll* The Niece spent many Years Disowned by her own Family and became so vulnerable that she joined a Cult as a Young Teen and became a JW for many Years. I think she craved the "Family" she didn't have and they pretended to be that to her. Cults depend on inclusion and then exclusion to Control their People rigidly. And the difference between a Cult and a Religion IMO is what happens when you try to Leave. Leaving a Cult voluntarily is very hard unless THEY kick you out involuntarily.
An Aerial View of The Garage Mahal back when we bought Forever Boheme'. Now the She Shed, which matches the Colors of it, sits in front of that smaller Door on the Concrete Slab. Eventually I'll put a cover over the Top of that Door to the She Shed to provide a Shaded Work Space behind the She Shed for doing Projects we have to do Outdoors. I have a rolling Vintage Industrial Work Station Table on that Slab too and the 5th Wheel sits now where you see that Gravel area. That Property you see in the Background is where those Pinche Neighbors live who paid almost a Million for that Property and destroyed most of the Landscaping and it's either an Air B&B Party House or likely a Cartel Drop House we thing coz too many folks come and go from there all the time and too many occupy it at any given time too. I don't think whoever Bought it even lives in Arizona. You can see how lush our Mini Farms Community is by the dense Mature Tree Cover, very Rare in Arizona. All those Trees are in our Older Mini Farms Community, not the Residential Subdivision Hells that have built up around us.
Anyway, the Pinche Neighbors did build a very nice Casita that matches their Main House, behind the Main House, and that's the only Positive Improvement they did, otherwise they've laid the Exterior to Waste and Neglect. Vehicles parked all over the Front Yard where Beautiful Mature Landscaping once was, mostly 40-60 Year Old Palm Trees, that they cut all of it down. It had been a gorgeous Property on the Exterior and Interior when the previous Owner had it. They had Remodeled the Interior in a fabulous Urban Farmhouse Style. I shudder to think what it might look like Inside now if the Exterior Condition is any indication?! When Big Deep Pocket Investors buy expensive Homes and large Properties they often turn them into Party House or use them for nefarious purposes in better Neighborhoods that don't draw as much suspicion or attention to whatever Criminal Activities they're engaging in. So, we've had ATF and SWAT Team Raids recently and I'm glad... I Hope they all get driven out.
So, I had told my Cousin on the Rez that if her Older Sister has TB they should all get Tested and now they all are. Anyone whose been around Wewokajanna for the Past Three Years is required now to get Tested coz all of her Results came back Positive for advanced TB. I just Pray nobody else has it for it having been neglected for so long and potentially spreading among the Community? No telling who she even got it from really or how it got into the Community? I know they use the Indian Hospitals and Clinics exclusively, so I don't know if she's gone anywhere else or been transferred to anywhere else and I don't wanna upset her Sister by saying much more. They are very Poor and the Care most Indigenous receive is pretty marginal at best, as worst, it's absent and there have been many cuts in Federal Programs serving those Communities.
Both of the Federally Recognized Cherokee Tribes have about 10 Resort Casino Properties that the Cherokee Nation operates in Oklahoma. I don't know how much of what's made actually Helps all Registered Tribal Members tho', I've never asked since I'm not a Registered Tribal Member and my Dad's side were not of Federal Recognized Tribes, but my Cousins Mom is of the Cherokee Tribe and have lived on the Rez all their lives. I know my Cousins are impoverished and have had a lot of lack and substandard living conditions. The per capita income in Tahlequah is only around $28,232. A Single Adult in that area would have to make $52,000 to live what is considered 'comfortably'. I don't think my Cousins have ever lived what I'd call 'comfortably'. And I think if I'd grown up the way they had to, I wouldn't have likely Survived Childhood coz I did almost Die when I was 5 and spent a Year in a Military Hospital having Treatments and managed to Survive. If Dad had decided to get out of the Military and Live on the Rez, I doubt I'd of Survived frankly. But I think my Mom would have gone back to Wales first with us, than Live like that. *LOL*
I know I would never want to go back there even for visits, once was enuf for me. My Dad took us to the Rez when I was 16, I've never been back, it was deplorable the conditions, I'd never seen anything like it, total Culture Shock. My Brother would go with Dad to visit, I refused, I thought the Living Conditions in the early 1970's were appalling! My Mom said you should have seen it in the early 1950's when she first visited... she got the Vapors and said she even Cried that Human Beings were having to Live like that! Even the Poorest in Wales didn't live so impoverished. My Paternal Grandmother's Generation, that was all she knew tho', so she was reluctant to even have Positive Change, very set in her way of Life and in her Cultural way of Being, so she seemed Content and Happy. But when she got Sick, she Died. Many of the Relatives there, once they get Sick, they often Die. Often prematurely. I do not expect the Cousin with TB to Survive it. I Pray and Hope she does, but, it seems too far gone before they even got a proper Diagnosis for her or any Treatment and Hospitalization. It makes me Heartsick and not just becoz she's Family.
And now I wonder if my other Female Cousins Youngest Daughter, who was only in her 30's, might have Died from it? And the Female Cousin who has the TB, her Youngest Daughter, whose in her 40's, almost Died last Year, but managed to Survive. And my Male Cousin, their Oldest Brother, Died last Year too. I do Wonder if it was this now, left undiagnosed? We may never know, but there might have been Neglect by the Health Departments around there to catch what could have been an outbreak of Tuberculosis? I'm always skeptical, especially in Poorer Communities and Communities of Color, that the level of Care isn't up to par and catching these kinds of things early enuf that it doesn't spread among those Communities to Epidemic Proportions? Indigenous Populations experienced significantly higher COVID-19 Death Rates and Severe Illness compared to Non-Indigenous groups in the U.S.. They were nearly Twice as likely to Die than Non-Hispanic White People. Disproportionate Mortality Rates are not uncommon and never have been. So many of my Paternal Relatives have Died in the last couple of Years.
Processing all the Bad News is always difficult... Dawn... The Bohemian
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